Kill the Horizon
by NeonZangetsu
Summary: Months after Kaguya's sealing, shinobi are still picking up the pieces. Yet the conflict did not go unnoticed by the rest of their world, and their precious peace might cost them more than they dreamed. Exposed to the world at large and threatened with war, who will prevail? Who will Kill the Horizon? Naruto vs One Piece! Narutox? Sasukex? MASSIVE crossover. Vote for pairings!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Had a dream about this and ran with it like hell. Literally, I'm not kidding here folks. I must have eaten some seriously messed up stuff to have a dream like this. Then I remembered another odd request someone had asked me for Request Year-because a week is simply too short!-and my muse went absolutely BERSERK at the premise. I seriously woke up at seven in the morning and started in on this with a holy vegeance. Its probably well past the midnight hour by now!**

 **Remember, if you have a request, or even need help with an idea, feel free to ask! My fellow authors and I are always-or at least often-willing to help. Now...**

 **CRY HAVOC, LET SLIP THE DOGS OF WAR, AND CAST YER VOTES FOR WHAT YE WISH TO HAPPEN! For all express purposes, both Naruto and One Piece worlds share the same planet in this story, and Kaguya's meddling did NOT help with that...**

 **Hope ya like it~!**

 _"Ohhhh, so you're Naruto-kun, eh?"_

 _"The hell're you?"_

 _~?_

 **Prologue**

How long had it been since they'd thrown him in here?

Days?

Weeks?

Months?

Years, even?

They say time gets funny in a cell, but after all he'd suffered through Izumo Kamizuki wasn't laughing. Quite the opposite, in fact. He wanted to claw his ears out! He wanted to squeeze his eyes shut and wake up back in Konoha, pretend this was all some terrible, horrible dream. But it was no dream. The pain in his wrists was achingly real, and so too, were the shackles that held him. For countless days on end now he hadn't gotten so much as a wink of sleep, deprived of it and even the most basic decencies by his captors.

Dark, dank and unpleasant with the putrid odor of burning flesh and the screams of the damned, he might've suspected he was in hell, if _someone_ hadn't shoveled a bowlful of gruel through his door every morning.

Stripped of his clothes, his dignity, and beaten within an inch of his life, the shinobi dangled on the precipice of death. It was only sheer tenacity that kept him from tumbling over the edge into oblivion. His back may be a bloody mess, and his legs were so broken that he'd never walk again, But even that wasn't enough to break the Konoha shinobi.

He'd been in worse situations than this before-though not by much-and while he wasn't entirely confident he could escape this time, the Chunin was certain he at least had a way to make his captors pay for annihilating his squadmates.

In blood.

 _Gallons._

At this point, he was honestly contemplating biting down on the false tooth in the back of his mouth. It was the one place his captors hadn't thought to check, his one hope of escaping this hell. One hard bite would be more than to break the capsule within and unleash a potent poison into hsi blood, sending his chakra into overdrive and killing him instantly. It would be a quick release, moreso it would illuminate his presence to half of the world. His half, to be precise. The one with two young men who'd recently made an angry goddess their _bitch._ Two men who wouldn't take kindly to having their village threatened.

How had it come to this, anyway?

It all began with a mission request.

Ordinary enough really, even if the client came from across the sea-on the other side of the world-to beg for Konoha's aid. No one had batted an eye at it. They received unusual missions all the time, and so long as the task wasn't outright assassination or murder, the Leaf was happy to accept them. The task itself was a noble one at first glance, the client in question had come for a far-flung land known as _Alabasta_ , pleading with the-then Rokudaime Kakashi to send aid to her country.

Rescue a faltering nation from imminent collapse? Rescuing a princess?

Missions like that were a shinobi's bread and butter.

Izumo and Kotetsu had been part of the group that endured crossing the sea-and the resultant bout of seasickness-to the far flung land beyond. Along with the Ino-Shika-Chou trio they'd braved the perils of the nearly endless ocean to reach the far shore beyond.

At first, they'd been awed.

There was a whole other world that no one knew about, a thriving populace of people who didn't use chakra in their daily lives. Some _did_ possess rather startling bloodlines however, odd abilities apparently gained from devouring strange fruit. Food like the chakra fruit once birthed by the tree that would become the Ten-Tails and later Kaguya herself. It drew a rather disturbing parallel all things considered, one Izumo sadly never had a chance to inform his superiors of before his untimely capture.

Because this world had its own darkness as well.

Their so-called "World Government" was little more than a sham for beings known as the Tenryubito.

Izumo and his group had the misfortune of meeting one en-route to their destination.

These so-called Celestial Dragons were not dragons and they certainly weren't divine. Thus, when Izumo's group encountered a strange little man with a bubble helm viciously beating two children to death on the edge of town, they'd rashly ignored their guide's stringent warning _not_ to interfere and taken the vicious little man to task for his cruelty. One thing escalated into another and before cooler heads could prevail the man was dead, bleeding out at their feet. His _wife_ had shrieked and flailed at some strange mounted device attached to her wrist before Chouji flattened her.

Then the mission went sideways.

Had it been a trap, or were the just supremely unlucky?

Their guide had ushered them on before they could wring an explanation out of her. What had her words been? Something along the way of "Well, we're fucked. I hope you're happy." Ill at ease but well beyond the point of returning empty-handed, Izumo's group continued on, still resolving to see their task through to the end. Not an hour later, the shit hit the fan. Apparently that "snail" the woman had been speaking into was something of a communication device, and as it turned out, she'd managed to screw them over royally from beyond the grave.

They'd never stood a chance.

One moment they'd been trudging through a desert, the next; the skies broke open and hell rained down upon them. Chouji never saw the kick that atomized his skull and to be frankly honest, neither did Izumo. The only certainty he did have was that their client must've escaped in the chaos, because they never saw her among the dead. And there were many.

How did you fight a being made of pure light?

That was something even their high-tier fighters would struggle to deal with, but their group simply wasn't equipped to handle it. Kotetsu got lucky; he'd supposedly perished during the initial assault with Chouji and the others. Izumo hadn't been quite so...fortunate. He'd survived, somehow.

They'd chopped off his _hands_ and thrown him in here to rot.

Alas, the door chose that moment to creak open ominously, shaking the broken ninja from his gloomy thoughts.

Two men entered, both having to crouch due to their sheer height.

The first fellow was an obscenely large-in terms of raw height-individual with light skin and a square-shaped face, very pronounced facial features alongside short black hair, the latter only somewhat concealed by a white cap. He wore a crimson, double-breasted suit, decorated with what appeared to be a pink rose on his left button, contrasting his black gloves and shoes. Absolutely towering in sheer presence and stature, he only afforded Izumo the merest of glances but when he did, his glare seemed to bore through him like magma.

His companion proved worse.

 _Much_ worse.

Izumo recognized the other guest immediately if only because this was the one who'd butchered his team; an incredibly tall, middle aged man with a moderate amount of wrinkles on his face, black hair, and a very thin beard. Slim to the point of being lanky, his outfit comprised of a yellow striped suit with a long white coat draped over his shoulders like a cape, his arms not in its sleeves. Toss in a pair of pure white shoes, gold-amber tinted sunglasses, and a dark green shirt with a mauve tie under his yellow suit and you had a rather snappy looking fellow.

Unlike his compatriot, this one didn't look away.

"Why, hello again Izumo-kun~!" he drawled loosely, catching the Konoha shinobi staring. "And how are we doing todaaaaaay~?"

Kamizuki's jaw clamped shut.

"..."

"Now that's rude!" the yellow man cried. "We came all the way here just to see you and you won't even say hello?"

"Kizaru," the man in red rumbled, his voice like a slow-moving avalanche, "Stop tormenting him and get it over with."

"Fine, fine!" the now-named man sighed. "You're always so scary, Akainu. Well?" beady eyes narrowed behind the ill-fitting shades, "Where did you come from, hmm? Who do you work for? If you tell us, I can promise you your freedom."

Izumo didn't believe that for a moment. What freedom? His career as a shinobi was all but over. He'd never walk properly again. And even if Tsunade-sama did manage some miracle and create a fresh pair of hands to his mangled wrists, he'd never mold chakra properly after the damaged he'd sustained. So no, the promise of freedom wasn't looking very appealing at the moment. Even if it did mean a chance to report back to his superiors, not that he'd betray them anyway.

"I'm not telling you anything."

Kizaru's face lost its pleasant smile.

"That's a shame."

...why...?"

"Ordinarily, you're execution would be simple. But tell me, what's the punishment for freeing slaves of a Tenryubito?" when silence was the only reply, the merry man pressed on, grinning. "For kill that poor Celestial Dragon and his wife? Tell me, Izumo-kun, what's the penalty for that? "

The ninja refused to speak.

The tall man in red gestured negligently, eliciting a sigh from Kizaru.

"Too bad. I'll see you at your execution. Izumo-kun. Have fun being drawn and quartered!"

The shinobi went pale.

But then, remarkably, the beginnings of an idea began to form in the back of his brain. He was going to die. He knew that now. It only remained for him to make a place and time of his choosing. He could wait for the gallows to claim him, to be paraded about like a sack of meat for doing what he thought was right. _Or_ he could go out like a true ninja, and show Konoha's enemies that she was not a foe to be mocked lightly. Honor or dishonor, death without purpose or death for the sake of glory.

In the end, the choice was almost painfully obvious.

"Alright, alright!" he swallowed thickly, bringing the marine admiral up short. "I'll tell you who I work for. But he's strong, ya know? I'll have to tell you how to beat him."

Kizaru's face lit up with childish glee.

"By all means~!"

"Well, you need to listen closely." Izumo began, biting back a smile. "It all starts with...

Kizaru leaned forward, intently.

And Izumo grinned.

"Fuck. You."

Then he bit down.

 _Hard._

The resultant blast of chakra did very little to harm the man made of light or Akainu for that matter. It did however, shake Impel Down to its very foundations, flooding the lower levels and collapsing others altogether. Izumo's final, fateful act of defiance was not wasted. In fact, he'd become something of a legend for it on both sides of the world.

For in doing so, he started a war to end all wars.

 **A/N: Yar, reviews be the wind in the sails of me ship! Without 'em I can't sail! And there we go. Its essentially the Naruto World vs One Piece here folks, and it promises to be crazy, silly, and wild all at once! Be sure to vote for pairings because they're going to be a lot! As to the time period here, I'd say its shortly after Kaguya's "sealing" by Naruto and Sasuke, meaning both boys are at the peak of their power here. But its also before Naruto the Last Movie. But in terms of One Piece time...hmm. I think I'll leave that up to ya'll to guess.**

 **After all, where's the fun in telling ya'll that from the get go? I mean the presence of Sakazuki and Akainu ALONE should be a heavy enough hint.**

 **So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

 **...Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview!**

 **(Preview!)**

 _Sasuke pursed his lips._

 _"Please tell me you're joking, Naruto."_

 _The kage-to-be shrugged._

 _"I couldn't make this shit up if I wanted to, 'ttebayo." the young man grumbled. "Hell, I barely believe it."_

 _"What are you going to do?"_

 _"I think that's obvious."_

 _The last Uchiha narrowly restrained a frown as he beheld those angry, gleaming red eyes. His former teammate had a tendency to obliterate mountains when he was angry. Not that Sasuke was particularly calm, for that matter. He hadn't particularly known Chouji or Ino for that matter, but their deaths rankled him all the same. They didn't know if Shikamaru had managed to escape or not. It could've just as easily been Sakura on that mission, and then where would he be? The smoldering crater at his feet spoke volumes to his own emotional state._

 _Even then he didn't approach, watching the fierce Rasenshuriken swirlling in Naruto's hand, gathering up the wind and hurling it away into the distance._

 _"We're going to kick some ass."_

 **R &R~! =D**


	2. Kill the Peace

**A/N: Well, this chapter ended up being a LOT longer than I intended it. Guess that's what happens when your muse gets worked up, eh? I RETURN ONCE AGAIN! BETCHA DIDN'T EXPECT ME TO UPDATE SO SOON, EH?! LONG LIVE THE REQUEST YEARS! YUP. YEARS. As in more than one. I'm back and better than ever and I intend to keep up with this until my hands or my mind-whichever go first-fail me. If I'm going to bloody die then it'll be in a fucking blaze of glory! Note, I'm not entirely certain if I'm going to actually up and DIE without warning here, folks, but my health has been poorer than lately as of late and its rather worrying.**

 **Now...**

 **CRY HAVOC, LET SLIP THE DOGS OF WAR, AND CAST YER VOTES FOR WHAT YE WISH TO HAPPEN! For all express purposes, both Naruto and One Piece worlds share the same planet in this story, and Kaguya's meddling did NOT help with that...**

 **Now, onto answering some of the reviews we've received:**

 **From the Richmaster _:_**

 _This was an amazing start; I loved the way you showed the interactions and look forward to seeing where you go with this in terms of the politics, combat and exploration._

 _The exploration part in particular should be good as there are so many potential paths to take and interactions that could be, then there's also finding out who sent the mission request._

 _On the topic of pairings, I'd like to see some of the lesser used characters since Nami or Robin would tie them to the Straw Hats and that would somewhat take away from the theme of escalating war of multiple kinds between Konaha and the WG._

 _\- Baby 5; Joker is the most influential person in the Underworld, he would know that something big is happening and send agents to scout._  
 _Kalifa - could have a similar role to play to Baby 5 but on behalf of Cipher Pol._  
 _Reiju - I think that it would be interesting to see Germa 66 meet shinobi, she'd probably be a better match for Sasuke._  
 _Perona - a fun character whose abilities are useful; given her 'gothic' preferences she might take a shine to Sasuke._  
 _Ain - the Neo Marines might be interested too and Konaha might want info from as many sources as possible so the NM could be a good source._  
 _Shyarly - she says very little but has a great impact; it'd be interesting to see a seer meet the Child of Prophecy._

 **Answer: I actually have some plans to that effect, yes. The One Piece half of the "world" as we know it is very interested in the ninja world as a whole, and you can bet your bottom that the ninja aren't going to take kindly to that either...**

 **From Basecannon:**

 _Quick question, how are the strawhats and other bigger pirate crews going to be in this? are going to help the nations or stay out of it?_

 **Answer: Many pirates will be involved in this. As to whom they help or harm, well, you'll see...**

 **From Bme2589:**

 _Are there any deviations from canon regarding Kaguya or Naruto's personality or something?(aside from One Piece stuff, duh)_

 **Answer: There will indeed be deviations. As to how much and in regards to what happens, well, it depends.**

 **Hope ya like it~! And yes, we're going with the "Kill" titles for this story!**

 **And lets clarify one last thing.**

 **In THIS story, Naruto and Sasuke did NOT lose their arms, nor the power they had during their final battle. Its still there, sharper than ever. Add to that a ton of training, and well...**

 **...island busters, anyone?**

 **A LOT HAPPENS IN THIS CHAPTER WITH MAJOR PLAYERS IN THE WAR TO COME MAKING THEMSELVES KNOWN! HANG ONTO YOUR BOSHI~!**

 _"You're enjoying yourself, aren't you?"_

 _"Is it that obvious?"_

 _"IMMENSELY."_

 _~?_

 **Kill the Peace**

 _Ripples._

 _One never knows how far they may reach._

 _The smallest of stones, the tiniest of actions can create the greatest change._

 _Because the stone was cast; a ripple formed. Because the ripple formed, the water stirred. Because the water stirred, events changed. For want of change some events ended differently then they were ordained. Fate was denied; destiny defied. All because of that single stone, because of a simple ripple across space and time..._

 _...two worlds would collide._

 _Forces began to move._

* * *

 _(...Several Weeks Later in Dressrosa...)_

* * *

Doflamingo liked to think himself a clever man.

He prided himself on knowing nearly all there was to know in this world and them some; knowledge was power and he liked to believe that he knew just about everything. Not _everything_ of course because he wasn't god, but he liked to think he was pretty damn close. Any situation could be turned to his advantage, any foe could be made into an ally with the right amount of leverage...that, or a judicious application of his powers. He was not used. He used others. He was superior. He had none of those weak, human failings.

He kept his ears open at all times; his spies were always watching, always _listening_ , ever eager to funnel information to their master.

So when word reached the infamous Joker of a rather curious incident involving a group known as "shinobi" he found his interest piqued. He'd met stealth-oriented fighters before, but these were different. It was like comparing a candle to a roaring inferno. Fierce men and women who could walk on water, command the elements and more! Who knew what else they were capable of!? Clearly they didn't balk at killing a Tenryubito, the gall alone was enough to endear them to him. He didn't care that they were against the World Government and technically him by definition; this had all the markings of a grand war in the making.

So it was almost painfully easy to fan the flames.

Putting a few feelers out had been a mere matter of tracing their route back to their ship; from there, pitifully easy. The captain of said vessel that ferried them had the dual misfortune of both being a _civilian_ and saying no to _him._ He broke after only five minutes of bonewracking pain. Pitiful. His agents were already well on their way to the Elemental Nations. In fact it was quite possible they had already arrived, judging by the satisfied tone of Baby Five's most recent report.

He was under no illusions that others weren't making their moves, but that didn't matter. Let the Pirates and the Marines blunder about like stupid children.

 _His_ agents were going to get there first, and _he_ would reap the rewards.

They might not be quite up to par when it came to the raw skill of those shinobi, but they weren't there to fight. Their purpose was to collect information and report back to him. Him. No one else. No, Joker had decided at the outset of this that he wouldn't share his discoveries with that insipid fool Sengoku and his marines. They'd only muck it up.

No, a more...subtle touch was required.

"And who says I can't be subtle? Ha!"

Laughing softly to himself, the ruler of Dressrosa rose from his chair, snatched his sunglasses from the desk, and paced to the balcony overlooking his kingdom. The city stretched out below him, a garden that belonged to him and him alone. An entire kingdom in thrall to him, gained through careful deception and manipulation. But it wasn't enough.

Never enough.

He could never truly be content with ruling over this tiny kingdom. He wanted-needed!-more, and it was his belief that these "ninja" could put to good use and aimed to do just that. They hated the World Government, and he could use that hate to steer them in just the direction he wanted...

Just thinking of it made him smile.

"Tell Baby Five to keep a low profile." he commanded to a nearby servant, "I don't care what she does, but she's not to pick a fight with anyone under _any_ circumstances. I want her to find their best fighters and work them for any intel she can. I expect a report in three days."

The man bowed in deference and departed hastily, wary of the gleam in Joker's eye.

As well he should be!

Only once he was certain he'd been left alone did the Shichibukai allow himself a fit of crazed laughter.

"Ufufufufufu! Things are finally getting interesting!"

* * *

 _(...Marineford...)_

* * *

Too interesting, for a certain Fleet Admiral.

Sengoku felt the mother of all migraines coming on and for the life of him, he didn't know how to make it _stop._ Garp's absence certainly wasn't helping any; the man had gone galavanting off to kami-knew-where and left him to deal with this mess! And what a mess it was! He'd been bombarded with demands and requests ever since the horrible incident known as the "Ninja Storm" first occurred. In hindsight it was not the best of names, but word of mouth had already spread too far by the time anyone thought to change it so come what may.

Because it _was_ a storm.

A veritable shit-storm, and those damned World Nobles were, as ever, at the center of it.

He still didn't know the full details of the incident, only that two World Nobles had been set upon by these "ninja" and all hell had broken loose. Then, their only prisoner, one Izumo Kamizuki, had committed suicide by way of explosion and nearly destroyed half of Impel Down. Kizaru and Akainu were still scared shitless over that final act of defiance. Izumo's last ditch effort had done much more that frighten two admirals and inflict a bit of damage; it'd shaken the world apart, revealing the existence of a third power in the world, one that did not brook threats quietly.

They'd been suffering a smattering of isolated incidents since.

High-tier personnel gone missing, or changing their views entirely.

Classified intelligence leaked to the public.

The names/locations of marine families made known to pirates.

Those were to name a few! How did you fight something like that?!

The Tenryubito wanted blood of course; they wanted to wipe out these "ninja" for daring to slay two of their own. And what a Celestial Dragon wanted they often got. Of course it didn't help that the Gorosei just _had_ to meddle in his affairs. He'd effectively been cut out of the loop; nothing he did or said would change anything. There would be war, one way or another. Awful, senseless war, and not for the first time, Sengoku seriously considered telling those damned lizards to shove their pride up their ass.

 _Entitled little twats!_

Let the Cipher Pol investigate, he was washing his hands of this disaster!

One could only pray these "ninja" never thought to join forces with those damned pirates...

* * *

 _(...Aboard The Moby Dick...)_

* * *

Sakura Haruno did not consider herself a vicious person.

Not by any stretch of the imagination; she was a medic, after all. She lived to heal, not harm. She took pride in tackling medical problems that most would dismiss, curing impossible cases that even her mentor Tsunade would find improbable. It was tedious but rewarding work, and she would've been lying if she claimed she took no pleasure in it. Sakura _lived_ for the joy that came from seeing relief and awe in the eyes of a single patient after a successful operation, the sight of it more cathartic than smashing a thousand boulders.

In the months after Kaguya's 'demise' she had taken less missions in favor of improving her craft. She knew then what she knew now; strong though she might be, she'd never match Naruto and Sasuke in terms of raw potential. But she was a _damn_ good medic/healer and she was proud of it. There was no one better in all of the Elemental Nations.

And for a time, she had been content with this.

All that changed when Ino died.

Word traveled quickly in the Elemental Nations, no matter where you were. Present in Kumo at the time as part of a diplomatic mission when news of the war broke out, she'd been one of the first to receive the news. It had...broken something inside of her. They might have grown apart in recent years, but they'd still been friends. And now she was gone. Dead. Murdered in cold blood. Sakura set out with the first wave without any real thought on her part; she'd simply been too angry to consider another alternative and besides, they'd needed a healer. Samui had all but begged her to go, and well, she could be very persuasive...

But there had been other reasons.

For the first time in a long time, she genuinely wanted to hurt someone; to demolish the enemy who'd killed one of her truest friends. It was a frightening thought all things considered.

Which led to the rather tenuous situation in which the pinkette now found herself.

She hadn't expected her group to encounter _one of the most powerful men this side of the world had to offer._ She certainly hadn't been prepared to meet a great giant of a man, perhaps even the strongest in the world. Even now it was all she could do to focus on the task at hand and _not_ look up at the great goliath towering over her, to ignore those bright yellow eyes-and the many eyes of his crew-boring into her as she worked. This was no mean feat, repairing such extensive damage on one so old, but she was confident in her ability to do so. Even if it did exhaust most of her chakra, she didn't relish the thought of facing this many foes when she wasn't at her peak.

Meh, that was what she had her escort for.

Now if only her patient would just stop fidgeting!

"Would you kindly hold still?!"

"Gurararara," a laugh like rolling thunder answered, shaking the very deck beneath her feet. "Easier said than done!"

"Have you lost your mind, pops?!"

Ah, and there went blondie, yapping again.

"Tell bird boy over there to zip his lip or I'm going to hit him again." She informed her patiently sweetly.

The palpable aura of menace as she said this had many of the men shaking in their boots.

All but one.

Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard, had not, in fact, lost his mind. He felt quite healthy, actually. Better than healthy! He felt as if he were three decades younger! Marco meant well of course, but his wariness was misplaced. If the pink haired girl tending to him had meant him harm, he would've been dead long ago. But, he wasn't dead. He felt fit as a fiddle! With pervasive weakness in his lungs gone, he found he could see clearer, breathe deeply, speak clearly without fear of erupting into a coughing fit. He could probably wrestle three admirals with one hand tied behind his back!

But this blasted woman wouldn't let him stand up until she was finished!

He was looking at a handful of rather curious individuals, the smallest of which, a rather curious looking girl with pink hair had offered to "cure" him shortly after their vessel had been commandeered. Restore him to his prime, in exchange for an alliance. He too had been wary of such a sweet deal, at first. But in the end he'd had little to lose and much to gain. Whitebeard did not fear death in any form, but he wasn't entirely averse to living a bit longer, either.

Needless to say, he'd accepted.

Strange, these shinobi.

"Marco! Let her be. I'm feeling better already!"

Sakura restrained a small smile, wiping a bead of sweat from her brow. Of course he felt better. She was the best. Taking her hands from the last suture, she willed it to close with her chakra and stood. It was certainly disconcerting to work on someone so large, but she took pride in it. After all, if this paid off, she'd have secured an important alliance for her people in the war to come. Surely that was worth a little chakra exhaustion, just this once?

"All set." she informed him. "Stand up, please."

Whitebeard did so slowly and ponderously, casting everyone in his shadow, blotting out the sun. For a fleeting moment, Sakura wondered if he'd honor their terms. She could feel Samui's gaze resting firmly on her back with nervous anticipation; the bodacious blond was ready to spirit her away overboard if need be. It was touching, really. Doomed against someone so out of their league of course, but Sakura still found it touching. She had done all she could now, and in the end, it was simply up to fate. Oh, Neji would've gotten a kick out of that one.

A heartbeat passed and all was painfully still.

Then, incredibly, Whitebeard _laughed._

"GURARARARARA! I don't believe it!" he boomed, throwing his head back! "I feel incredible! What's your name, girl?"

"Sakura." she deflated, the tension fleeing from her shoulders. "Sakura Haruno."

"Well then, Sakura! I think you've more than upheld your end of the bargain. What would you say to joining my family?"

"Sorry." the pinkette fingered her headband. "I've already got a family of my own."

"Pity." Newgate rolled his muscled shoulders in a heavy shrug. "But family is family, after all." the titan rumbled in agreement. "I accept your terms!" A massive hand swept toward her in a gesture of friendship, fingers extended. "Pick your target and my sons and I will do the rest."

Sakura grinned and shook that hand.

It was all teeth.

"Tell me where the _Tenryubito_ live."

Whitebeard laughed even louder.

"Oh, you saucy brat! I LIKE you!"

After all, as the old saying went...

 _...the enemy of my enemy is my friend._

* * *

 _(...?...)_

* * *

Shikamaru woke up.

Well.

 _That_ was surprising.

His first realization that he _hadn't_ joined his teammates in death was the crippling ache in his ribs. That, and the searing pain in his head. An angry growl in his stomach made itself known moments later, a low rumble of vocal displeasure that drew a pained grimace from the battered Nara. When he finally dared to open his eyes it was to darkness, the gloom of the room illuminated by the waning light of a worn candle. Propping his flagging body up on an elbow, spartan and humble furnishing greeted his gaze. A lone door provided the only exit, and he wouldn't be surprised to find it locked.

With a supreme effort of will, he forced himself upright and decided to risk standing.

Needless to say, mistakes were made.

Scarce had his feet found the floor than his legs collapsed like a pair of wet noodles; folding out beneath him in an instant. Arms pinwheeling he crashed to the deck, collapsing with a strangled hiss. Blood sprayed upon his tongue, informing him that he'd just mangled his lip. Someone had stripped him of his shirt and sheathed most of his upper torso in bandages, and now those wounds were making themselves known with a vengeance.

"Where in the hell...?"

Say what you would about laziness, but Shikamaru's mind immediately began analyzing the situation.

Judging by the strange way the floor rocked beneath his body, he hazarded he was at sea. On a ship. Which made no sense. His last memory was of a desert. Granted one rather close to the sea, but a desert, still! He distinctly remembered Ino flashing him a wry grin when he complained about the heat, grumbling halfheartedly as she gave him a quick kiss which of course only made him even warmer at the time. Then she'd shoved him into the water. Wait. That didn't make sense. His memories were jumbled. Twisted. But he was fairly certain they'd been on land. Yes. That was where they'd been. Where they'd been attacked-

 _Ino._

 _Chouji._

The memory of their deaths hit Shikamaru all at once, driving him to his knees with a sharp cry. Curses leaped from his lips to shatter the silence. Equal parts pain and misery, spitting livid oaths so black and foul they would have made even Kaguya herself blanch.

All those men and women.

Dead.

Ino.

Dead.

 _Naruto was going to be pissed._

Hell, a lot of people were going to be pissed! _He_ was pissed! Gone. They were all gone. Gone, gone, gone, gone, _gonegonegonegone_! GONE! She was gone, too! Ino-his love, his heart!-was gone. This pain put Asuma's passing to to shame, made it feel like a mere shadow by comparison. He was alive because of her, somehow. He was certain of it. But instead of helpless sorrow, he felt only rage, white-hot anger-no. He was well past even that point by now; the fires of his hate cooling sharply, freezing into a lake of raw, glacial ice, a cold grudge towards all Marines that he might well nurse for the rest of his life, one above all.

He was going to gut the glinty-bastard!

No, that'd be too easy!

Before he could act on said plans however, a soft knock echoed from beyond the door.

"I'm coming in." a soft, female voice announced, turning the handle moments later.

Shikamaru was just about to raise his voice and say otherwise when it swung open.

He found himself facing a slender, curvaceous young woman with reddish-brown eyes and dark blue hair framing her face, held back with a hairpiece in a style he couldn't recognize. Nor did he understand her clothing, a long black and gold captain's coat of all things, while underneath her clothes appeared quite formal due to her high heels, black leggings, and brown top and skirt. All in all she looked like something out of some child fantasy book, _especially_ with that large white bow on the front of her collar.

She paused, taking him in.

"Ah. I see you're finally awake."

"Where am I?"

"Safe." Came the simple reply as she circled the bed, depositing the tray at his feet. "You should eat, ninja-san. You'll need your strength in the days to come." Shikamaru shot the bluenette a dark glower, but otherwise remained silent. If she knew he was a ninja then she might well be an enemy.

"I don't believe that."

His host smiled demurely.

"You needn't worry. We're no allies of the Word Government...and neither are you."

His host shook her head.

"Look, you have me at a disadvantage, miss...?"

"Ain." the young woman supplied helpfully.

"Right. Ain." Shikamaru gave a gusty sigh, grimacing when his ribs shrieked in protest. "I'm not in the best mood right now, so I'm only going to ask this once. "Are we friends...or foes?"

"That will be for Zephyr-sensei to decide." The now-named Ain replied.

"Then why don't you got get hi-

The door creaked open and Shikamaru nearly froze.

"Zephyr-sensei" was apparently a very large, muscular, tan-skinned man, standing around twice the height of a typical man such as Shikamaru himself. Short purple hair framed by dark triangular sunglasses, and a large mechanical right arm connected to the left hip with converted mast rigging. It was a weapon he decided, one he didn't want to mess with. Dressed in an eerily similar style to the woman-was she a subordinate of some sort?-he wore dark-like coat with another baffling symbol impressed on it, baggy trousers tucked into his boots and a grin that could put Madara to shame, he looked rather intimidating.

Presently, he was looking at Shikamaru as if he were lunch.

"Let's talk." the leader of the Neo-Marines rumbled.

The Nara twitched.

 _"Troublesome."_

* * *

 _(Konoha...)_

* * *

Sasuke Uchiha felt himself teetering on the edge of an explosion.

With each passing moment he spent in the village streets, he risked lashing out at a hapless passerby, tempting the brunt of his power to bear upon a witless civilian. His Sharingan had taken to activating of its own will as he walked-a very _fast_ walk-a sure sign that he was stressed, as much as he might loathe to admit it. It wasn't even their fault. Not really. They weren't the target of his ire. He couldn't even claim the village itself for provoking him; because it had not, and thus, wasn't the source of his anger.

His wrath lay decidedly elsewhere.

On the other side of the globe.

The entire village stood on edge-as it had for several days now, since news of Izumo's untimely demise. Their sensors had felt the chunin's chakra pulse wildly for a fleeting moment and vanish, a sure sign he'd used the suicide pill that most high-level chunin were given. That proved worrying in-and-of itself but what _truly_ unsettled the last Uchiha was the fact that the obliterated team had been comprised of _multiple_ cells. Something of a joint venture between villages, the first-and potentially last-of its kind.

Konoha, Kiri, Kumo, Suna, and even the increasingly reclusive _Iwa,_ each of the major nations had lost men and women to this sudden, unprovoked assault. Many of whom had friends, family.

Wives.

Husbands.

Daughters.

Sons.

Needless to say, the Elemental Nations were not having a good week.

Kumo was positively livid; Ay had declared war almost before news even reached their borders. Iwa wasn't far behind. They took the loss of their shinobi very seriously; moreso the idea that their personnel been coldly betrayed in a foreign land. Suna didn't believe that there had _been_ any such betrayal-unlike an increasingly paranoid old Onoki!-but still took the deaths seriously in their own right. In the end, they'd resolved to stand by whatever decision Konoha made. And of course, Kiri had sworn to do the same, unwilling to throw their troops into a battle endorsed by only two of the five major villages.

Of course that put Kakashi in the untenable position of having to decide whether there would or wouldn't _be_ a war. Kumo and Iwa resolved going to fight regardless of whether their Damiyo backed them or not, and with many citizens of the Leaf up in arms at the cold execution of their own shinobi, the cries for peace fell on deaf ears.

They weren't the only ones.

Many of the minor villages were rattled by the idea that they weren't the only ones kicking about the continent. Who knew what manner of upstarts might try to attack or worse, invade? Should Konoha go to war, then Suna would march with them. So would Kiri, and likely nearly every other able-bodied man and woman the other villages could muster. Not that shinobi marched.

One way or another, something was going to begin.

And then it would end.

Sasuke couldn't deny that a small part of his soul thrilled at the idea; leaping back into the fray and putting the fear of god into witless fools. A black spark danced across his right hand just thinking about it. It would be just like the old days. But on an intellectual level, he could somewhat understand Kakashi's reluctance to get involved in what was clearly shaping up to be a disaster of epic proportions. If it had simply been Konoha the mainlanders had provoked, that would've told a different story. But an entire Shinobi Alliance comprised of multiple villages?

Villages who'd _each_ lost ninja to these barbarians?

Villages who pledged themselves to Konoha's cause in the fight to come?

The course was clear.

Like it or not, there would be war.

 _War._

Sasuke pursed his lips at the thought.

Peace truly had been a fleeting dream, it seemed.

Returning his attention to the ground, Sasuke found that his feet had already carried him to his destination. Having left behind the more populous market in favor of a worn path leading to the outskirts of the village, the lone Uchiha realized he'd reached the training ground he'd sought. If the one he sought was going to be anywhere, it would be here. He wasn't the sort to sit at home and mope; on the contrary, he was a man of action, he had been back then, he was now, and likely would remain so until the day he died.

The one he'd been searching for, even more so.

He found him easily enough.

You just had to follow the explosions.

So it came as no small surprise when Sasuke found his old teammate kicking about in their old stomping grounds. This particular training zone brought back rather fond memories, memories of a better time. A simpler time. The bell test, their first team exercise, the chaos and hilarity that'd ensued...of course he would be here. Where else in the village could he possibly go to blow off steam?

Oddly enough, he wasn't alone.

Drawing nearer to the racket, he found a kunoichi waiting

Short, black hair framed an angular face from which bright black eyes shone. She wore the standard attire of most Iwa-nin these days, consisting of a red uniform with her right sleeve missing and a lapel over her right leg, the brown Iwagakure flak jacket, fishnet tights and a skirt over them. Somehow in spite of that, she managed to radiate raw sexuality despite her seemingly innocuous attire-as though just _daring_ anyone to make a pass at her and see what would happen. Sasuke knew better. Sai had nearly been buried under a small mountain when he'd tried that.

Ah, and she was looking right at him.

"Kurotsuchi."

The young woman gave him a wry grin, dark eyes dancing.

"Uchiha. Well, don't _you_ look fucking pissed."

Sasuke bit back a grimace.

"Is it that obvious?"

The girl grinned.

"Yup."

As ambassador of Iwa, this foul-mouthed woman was technically next in line to succeed her aging grandfather Onoki; but in the meantime and a more official capacity, she served as a liaison between the Stone and the Leaf. Just as Temari served as the representative of Suna these days, so too did Kurotsuchi find herself acting in such a capacity. Most villages usually had at least one or two of their best shinobi in foreign villages as a true sign of trust. Omoi was probably puttering somewhere around here, too, but Sasuke wasn't inclined to wast time searching for the worrywart. The delegate from Kiri was of little concern to him, either.

The difference being that Kurotsuchi was one of the few foreign shinobi to genuinely have his _respect._

"Is he here?" he asked of the Iwa Kunoichi.

The blackette scoffed and flicked a thumb over her shoulder.

"He's over there." she sighed. "Good luck."

He nudged past her with a grunt.

"I won't need it."

"Yes, you will~!" Kurotsuchi singsonged at his back. "He's even more stubborn than me~!"

The Uchiha snorted and kept walking.

Naruto and Kurotsuchi had taken a strange liking to one another, one Sasuke didn't entirely understand. True, they had a bit in common with one another; both were loud, brash and full of life, destined to become Kage of their respective villages. They'd run a handful of joint missions together, and seemed to work well. He wouldn't quite call it a romance-not yet!-but he could see where it was going. Naruto might be as dense as a sack of hammers, but even _he_ must've noticed the way she'd been making eyes at him. A shame, really. Hinata would have to work fast if she wanted to have any hope of getting to him before Kurotsuchi did.

He got the distinct impression Onoki's granddaughter didn't like to share.

Sasuke rather liked her himself. She spoke bluntly and got shit done.

She was also hellbent on dragging his best friend into a war zone.

It remained to be seen if he'd be joining them in that madness.

Threading his way through the trees, the Uchiha heard the wind rise and braced himself for what he knew was coming.

 **BA-KRAM!**

A shrieking, earth-shattering explosion rattled Sasuke's teeth as a nearby grove of trees _disintegrated at the molecular level;_ a thought was all it took to deflect the flying trunks away from himself and into the ground, others into the air. By then he'd closed the distance between them and finally found the source of all this ruckus. Sure enough there he was, winding up for another Rasenshuriken, staring blindly ahead, paying his new bloodied knuckles no mind-how many of those had he been throwing, exactly?

"So." Sasuke began eloquently.

"I'm going." Naruto interjected with a low growl. "You can't stop me."

Of _course_ the dobe was going.

"Please tell me you're joking, Naruto."

The kage-to-be shrugged.

"I couldn't make this shit up if I wanted to, 'ttebayo." the young man grumbled. "Hell, I barely believe it. But I can't just stand by and do nothing."

"What are you going to do?"

"I think that's obvious."

The last Uchiha narrowly restrained a frown as he beheld those angry, gleaming red eyes. His former teammate had a tendency to obliterate mountains when he was angry these days. Not that Sasuke was particularly calm, for that matter. He hadn't particularly known Chouji or Ino for that matter, but their deaths rankled him all the same. They didn't know if Shikamaru had managed to escape or not. It could've just as easily been Sakura on that mission, and then where would he be? She was already in Kumo on a diplomatic mission; who knew if she'd already gone to the front lines?

She was just stubborn that way.

The smoldering crater at his feet spoke volumes to his own emotional state in regards to _that._

Even then he didn't approach, watching the fierce Rasenshuriken swirling in Naruto's hand, gathering up the wind and hurling it away into the distance. Sasuke observed the distant explosion with quiet reverence, idly noting the inspired usage of the _Yoton_ element. Hmm. Seemed he'd been practicing again. Extensively. A technique like that was large enough to take out the Ten-Tails in one shot; Sasuke didn't even want to _think_ of what that just might have done if it actually hit the ground.

"I suppose you want to drag me along for the ride." he offered, as the blinding light gradually waned away into nothingness. "Don't you?"

"That'd be nice, yeah." the blond admitted with a grin, flexing his sore fingers into a fist. "Think about it; It'll be just like old times."

"And what if I'm done?" Sasuke challenged, unwilling to make it easy for his old friend. "You've got Kurotsuchi to back you up."

"I do, and _bullshit."_ Naruto shot back. "I know you love a good fight, sir broody pants."

Sasuke twitched.

"I thought we agreed never to speak of that again."

His teammate whistled innocently.

"Speak of what again?"

"...damnit.

Naruto's grin was possibly the most terrifying thing he'd ever seen.

"We're going to kick some ass."

 **A/N: Yar, mateys! Yer reviews be the wind in the sails of me ship! Without 'em me ship can't sail! Without 'em, me ship SINKS! And yup, pairings are up in the air! VOTE YA SCALLYWAGS!**

 **VOTE~!**

 **Now, lets clarify some things before you all get confused.**

 **Kumo and Iwa are currently declaring WAR on the World Government. Sakura, being in Kumo for a mission, ended up being drafted into that mess. I even went to the trouble of mentioning it TWICE now. Hence why she met Whitebeard. Naruto and Sasuke do NOT know she's over there. They do NOT know that Shikamaru is alive. And they WILL be setting foot in the realm of One Piece next chapter, and they won't be alone.**

 **Got that?**

 **Great!**

 **As to everything else...**

 **...well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? I promise, next chapter will have more of the promised humor, fear not! And we get into pairings...MWAHAHAHAHA!**

 **So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

 **..Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the previews! THAR BE FOUR!**

 **(Preview!)**

 _Crocodile blinked, gazing at his wardrobe._

 _...why was everything orange?_

* * *

 _Naruto's brow shot straight to his hairline._

 _"Uh...thanks for the assist, but who are you?"_

 _"Nico Robin." the dark skinned woman replied, extending a hand. "I believe we can help each other."_

 _Several hands, in fact._

 _"Holy crap!"_

 _The blond squawked in surprise and_ _Sasuke arched an eyebrow at the blatant flaunting of her ability. In the end, it was the Uchiha who recovered his voice first. Leave it to Naruto to make him the negotiator; when he got distracted by something cool his former teammate was absolutely helpless at this sort of things. Damn the infernal heat of this desert and double damn Kakashi for naming the dobe as the next Hokage. If he acted like this on a mission, how the hell was he going to lead a village?_

 _At length he realized their "accomplice" was looking at him most pointedly._

 _The Uchiha sighed heavily._

 _"We're listening."_

* * *

 _The Allied Ninja Forces infiltrated the shipyards of Water Seven under cover of darkness._

 _Working as one unit, twelve men and women slipped effortlessly incapacitated the guards aboard each of the moored vessels and went to work. Dozens of concealed explosive tags, primed for remote detonation, were slapped to the hull and stern of each vessel. Positioned in such a place as to inflict maximum impact and casualties. Civilian deaths were regrettable of course, but this war. In war there would death, and their purpose-their orders-were stringently clear and there was no room for crises of conscience here._

 _Planks were loosened, traps slid into place with seamless steath._

 _When one could walk up walls, tread across water and wield all manner of elements as well as illusions, this was a menial task by comparison. The marines might have their guns and their cannons, but shinobi were not fools; why face an enemy head on and risk death when you could flank them? Why fight a strong opponent when you could slip in through the rear and cripple him? Yes, the World Government might possess more raw firepower and sheer numbers but they did NOT possess skilled fighters to match them._

 _A ninja was trained to fight from the day he could walk._

 _The most an average marine could do was shoot a gun._

 _A ninja was trained to infiltrate and wreak havoc. Impersonate key personnel, leak key documents, cause chaos. And they already had. But this.._

 _These fools would rue the day they crossed the Elemental Nations._

* * *

 _(...The Grand Line...)_

* * *

 _"Oi, Nami! What's a ninja?"_

 _The Strawhat's navigator frowned, snatching the paper from her captain._

 _Then the girl went pale._

 _"Are you kidding me?!"_

 _"Hmm?" Sanji glanced up from his recently prepared cuisine, realizing the color had drained from her face. "What is it, Nami swan? Oh, could it be~?!" hearts danced in his eyes as he swooned."Could it be that you've finally fallen in love with-_

 _BOINK!  
_

 _Her fist descended mercilessly on the lovelorn cook's head, raising a welt._

 _Zoro snickered._

 _"Ha!"_

 _BOINK!_

 _...until he joined Sanji on the deck in a groaning heap._

 _"Quiet, the both of you!"_

 _"S-Scary!" Chopper cried! "Nami's gotten scary!"_

 _"Oi, Luffy?!" ignoring their terrified doctor, the thief rounded on Luffy."Where did you get this?!"_

 _Luffy grinned._

 _"The bird dropped it off."_

 _"What bird?!" Vivi took one look at the paper and went pale as well. "Oh, no..._

 _Their captain only grinned._

 _"Nin-Nin!"_

 **R &R~! =D**


	3. Kill the Nobility

**A/N: Yo! AND THE REQUEST YEARS ROLL ON AND ON AND OOOOOON~!**

 **Also. I am officially DONE with the dating scene for awhile and I need to vent, here. Don't get me wrong, I'm not an ugly guy by any means, as those of you who've seen my real face during events would happily attest, but why why WHY do I always get the women who have damn commitment/cheating issues?! Am I cursed or something?! Why is everyone I meet so bloody unfaithful?!**

 **Ugh.**

 **Meh, at least this gives me some more time to write.**

 **Now...**

 **CRY HAVOC, LET SLIP THE DOGS OF WAR, AND CAST YER VOTES FOR WHAT YE WISH TO HAPPEN! For all express purposes, both Naruto and One Piece worlds share the same planet in this story, and Kaguya's meddling did NOT help with that...**

 **ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE~!**

 **LOADS of VIOLENCE in this chapter! I apologize if any of you are offended...**

 **Some think Sakura's being a bit OOC. The first half of this chapter explains why.**

 _"And so the carnage has begun..._

 _...no hiding place for anyone..._

 _~?_

 **Kill the Nobility**

The Allied Ninja Forces infiltrated the shipyards of Water Seven under cover of darkness.

Working as one unit, twelve men and women slipped effortlessly incapacitated the guards aboard each of the moored vessels and went to work. Dozens of concealed explosive tags, primed for remote detonation, were slapped to the hull and stern of each vessel. Positioned in such a place as to inflict maximum impact and casualties. Civilian deaths were regrettable of course, but this war. In war there would death, and their purpose-their orders-were stringently clear and there was no room for crises of conscience here.

Planks were loosened, traps slid into place with seamless stealth.

When one could walk up walls, tread across water and wield all manner of elements as well as illusions, this was a menial task by comparison. The marines might have their guns and their cannons, but shinobi were not fools; why face an enemy head on and risk death when you could flank them? Why fight a strong opponent when you could slip in through the rear and cripple him? Yes, the World Government might possess more raw firepower and sheer numbers but they did NOT possess skilled fighters to match them.

A ninja was trained to fight from the day he could walk.

The most an average marine could do was shoot a gun.

A ninja was trained to infiltrate and wreak havoc. Impersonate key personnel, leak key documents, cause chaos. And they already had. But this..

These fools would rue the day they crossed the Elemental Nations.

And the worst was yet to come.

* * *

 _(...The Red Line...)_

* * *

 _"Soooooo, this is where the Tenryubito live~?"_

Sakura peered upward intently, a gloved hand shading her face as she stared up at towering impasse that was the Red Line. It glared back at her in stoic silence, a great crimson wall, towering as high as the eye could see, an immovable, immutable barrier that separated one half of the world from the other. She was not impressed. Oh sure, it was certainly terribly large and imposing and whatnot, but size meant nothing to a shinobi. More often than not size could be turned against you, size made for a larger target. Size meant vulnerability. Weakness.

Weaknesses that could be exploited.

For, living or not, the Red Line remained very much a strong symbol of the Celestial Dragon's status in the world, a natural monument that stood above all others. And if Whitebeard's reconnaissance was to be believed-and she suspected it was-atop it stood _Mariejois_ , the home of the Celestial Dragons. Rather sad, actually. They assumed this paltry wall would save them? That it would keep the legions of the Elemental Nations out? It was laughable, just how misplaced their confidence was.

Back in her prime, Tsunade could have brought the Red Line down in half a day.

 _Sakura was better._

Far better.

Because something changed in her the day they'd defeated Kaguya.

For weeks afterward, she'd been unable to understand what, exactly. Ever since the Rabbit Goddess was finally defeated and sealed away by Naruto and Sasuke-kun, she found herself restless. Hearing voices. Whispers in her dreams, senseless images haunting her in waking moments, her strength skyrocketing at unexpected intervals. In the end a full examination was ordered by Tsunade and stringent tests conducted. The results were...alarming, to say the least. Kaguya may well be dead and gone, but a piece of her remained. Said piece was currently latched onto Sakura's chakra system, threading its way into her coils. Not a parasite they'd said, for it didn't harm her, but a symbiot. It thrived off her chakra and instead of exacerbating the situation, it actually _**improved**_ her body.

At first she'd wanted to get the damn leech ripped out of her, no matter the cost. But any attempt to remove it would rupture her coils and surely kill her outright.

So she was forced to live with a small piece of godhood trapped inside of her.

Forced to figure out how to use this piece, how to make it bend to her will.

Not enough to bring Kaguya back, mind you, but just a piece.

A small piece.

She didn't rightly know what it meant or what the deity had been attempting to do to her; some last desperate attempt on Kaguya's part to take hold of her body and continue the fight? Or perhaps some other, insidious plot? Whatever machinations Otsutsuki managed, they had failed. The "lump" of chakra wasn't even sentient, and with time the whispers faded. These days, she found that they only reared their head when she was in a fit of absolute fury and even then, they were little more than whispers against the

The power was hers.

Wholly at one with nature, she was aware of every facet of the wall towering over her. She could see the cracks and chips in the wall where some had dared to climb it, feel the weaknesses as though they were her own in her own body. Not just of that, but life itself. She felt the deck of the Moby Dick rock restlessly beneath her feet, felt every brush of the gentle waves against the hull. The night air tasted of salt and sea and savagery, the boiling emotions of the pirates in the hold below acted as an anchor to remind Sakura where she was, lest she drift off again and lose herself.

Increased sensitivity was a small price to pay for he newfound powers.

Power she had worked hard to master, so they wouldn't master _her._

Grueling weeks of training with Katsuyu in the dark depths of the Shikkotsu Forest had paid off, both in learning to master her new gifts and more. Yes, the wise slugs had taught her well. Gold eyes with a twinge of azure-white gazed out on the world, marveling at it in all its complexity. Natural energy was thick on this side of the world, a heady brew that she drew in even now, carefully locking it away in the seal upon her forehead for later use. She couldn't claim to possess the same godlike mastery as her teammates, but it was more than enough to amplify her already insane strength even further. And with power, came clarity.

Now she knew why Naruto used Sage Mode so often.

To wield a power like this...

...it was...

...intoxicating.

 _She could crush worlds with it._

As if summoned by that very thought the moon finally dared to peek its head out from behind the clouds and face the kunoichi, gentle beams of faint light illuminating the night. Casting the sealing script lining her bare shoulders into stark relief. Sakura was quite proud of it. Samui had sacrificed seven hours painstakingly-lovingly-painting one of Kumo's penultimate fuinjutsu onto her body, preparing for every possible eventuality that might occur. The thought brought back warm memories. Nothing short of getting skewered through the heart or decapitation would be able to put her down for the duration of this assault.

It made her look like something of a horned demon, sheathed in tattoos.

Honestly, it was almost enough to make her feel bad!

For her victims, that is.

Oh, wait. Right. Ino.

They'd killed her.

 ** _...NEVERMIND._**

"Ah, found you."

A shadow fell over her on the deck, momentarily blotting out her dark thoughts with the moonlight. She didn't have to turn to know who it was; her finely attuned senses sensed the sheer _vitality_ thrumming behind her at once, that age-old strength that defied logic and imagination. This man could probably give Naruto and Sasuke a run for their money through sheer strength alone-and that was without his reality breaking ability. He terrified her, but as an ally, she couldn't be happier to have him on their side.

"Whitebeard." she nodded curtly. "You look well."

"I _feel_ well." the towering pirate chuckled deeply, hefting his massive _bisento_ over one shoulder. "Whatever you did worked wonders. So?" she could hear the speculative expression in his words as they stared at the red line, "Do you have a plan for getting us up there?"

By way of answering, Sakura turned her head. It earned her a frown.

"You look different. What happened to your eyes there, girl?"

The kunoichi beamed.

"You'll see."

When Newgate stepped forward Sakura moved aside. More of out respect than actual deference to him; that of a fellow warrior acknowledging their peer. In her heart of hearts she knew this man could turn render her a gory red smear on the ground if he so chose, and Sage Mode or no, she wouldn't be able to do a damn thing about it. She might be one of the strongest ninja in terms of of raw physical strength-eclipsed only by Naruto and Sasuke-but the giant looming over her was so utterly _beyond_ her ken that she didn't even think to snap at him for interrupting her brooding.

Wait a minute.

She'd been _brooding?_

Oh dear sweet baby Jesus!

She was turning into Sasuke-kun!

It didn't really matter, did it? No, not important.

Not when she was about to BUTCHER those insipid little dragons.

"Gurararara," a thunderous laugh rumbled through the air. "That's some bloodlust you have there. Its got most of my boys on edge. What did the World Government do to make you hate them so much?" For a fleeting instant she considered lying to him, then decided against it. Their relationship was one of mutual respect, and she aimed to keep it as such. If not for the sake of their alliance, then for Ino. That, and Sakura found that she honestly respected the old geezer enough not to bullshit him right to his face.

Even so she felt her face screw up, fighting a snarl.

"They...they, killed a dear friend of mine."

Newgate gave her a calm, knowing look.

"And you're angry. I understand."

...you do?"

"Would you like to hear a story, girl?"

Sakura nodded slowly.

The World's Strongest chuckled softly and turned his gaze back to the towering Red Line, staring deeply into the fog below. A distant, faraway look entered those pale golden orbs of his, as though he were experiencing a painful memory. Sakura wisely held her tongue until he decided to finish his tale.

"Some years ago," he began, "I took in a man named Teach. He was like family to me, same as Marco and the others. Then he killed one of my sons and fled. We've been hunting him ever since. I know what it feels to hate someone with all your body and soul."

"Ah."

In that instant Sakura's already substantial respect for Whitebeard climbed several notches more. Back home, everyone else would have insisted that she needed counseling of some sort. That she talk out her feelings. Bullshit. She didn't need some nearsighted psychiatrist droning at her to understand how she felt; just as she didn't need orders to tell her she had to _riptearmaimEVISCERATE_ the ones responsible for taking her friend away from her, for tearing a piece of her heart out and grinding it to dust-

"Ace is coming home." Whitebeard said by way of continuing their conversation. "He should be joining us in a few days."

Sakura blinked.

"Ace...?"

"A wayward son of mine who was, until recently, hunting that traitor I told you about." the towering pirate replied, hefting his lance. "He's hotheaded, can be a bit reckless sometimes, but he means well. You'd get along well with him, I think. But that's not why I'm ordering him home. If war is coming, as you believe," he paused, watching her nod, "Then I want to have all my sons where I can see them. I trust you don't mind staying a few days longer?"

Sakura tilted her head, pretending to consider his offer.

"That depends."

"On what?"

"How many targets we hit in the next few days." she replied primly. "Unless you want to stop here...?"

Behind them, Marco made a choking sound.

Whitebeard simply shrugged of the barb with a laugh.

"Oho! I like you! Are you sure you won't reconsidering joining my family?"

"Sorry, pops." the pinkette laughed, despite herself. "Already spoken for. Besides, we've got got a tight schedule to keep, you and I." A hand rose ponderously, knuckles cracking with menace. "Wouldn't want to keep those little lizards waiting now, would we?"

The giant remained silent but his grin spoke volumes.

Yes, enough talking, he decided.

It was time to begin.

"Okay, then!" with a sharp sigh, Sakura smacked her gloved fist into a palm. "Let's get started!"

Marco glowered at her back.

"If you betray us...

The kunoichi merely stuck out her tongue.

"Bite me, bird boy."

Then she flung herself into the ocean.

 _"What are you-?!"_

To their mutual surprise the young leaped off the deck and alighted effortlessly on the water, to several loud catcalls from the crew. Standing upon it as though it were a solid surface, ignoring the current rioting beneath her feet, Sakura started forward. Slowly at first, the faster, striding purposefully towards the wall before breaking into a spring. Grinning the kunoichi raised an arm, her seemingly delicate fingers clenching into an angry fist, bathed in blue chakra. Whitebeard and his men had no way of knowing just how terrifying that fist could be. How could they when their "guest" and her entourage had gone out of her way to be quiet and courteous to everyone aboard?

The moment Sakura Haruno came within spitting distance of the Red Line however, she dropped the facade.

In that instant, she stopped suppressing her chakra, willing it to her limbs, to surge and riot and explode.

Legs tensed against the writhing sea, muscles jumping in her calves as power answered the call.

Grinning she lunged at the Red Line, abandoning her sedate pace to fly at the barrier wall.

This fist had broken the jaw of a _goddess._

And they thought _this_ could stop it?

She cocked her fist back, planted her feet and-

 _ **"FOR INO! SHANNARO~!"**_

 _-let loose._

It was a very nice punch Whitebeard mused from afar; it would've easily put someone of Sengoku's level to shame. Even from here he could feel the raw power behind it, a primal, physical strength, eclipsed only by his own. It seemed she hadn't been lying after all. What a cheeky girl. Still, what could she possibly hope to accomplish by punching the Red Line? At best she might make a mark-perhaps leave a dent-but surely, she could see the futility in striking it head on. She should've asked him to do it, it would've been far easier-

 _Crack._

Oh?

Oho!

 _Ohoho!_

As Edward Newgate looked on, his mouth curved into a grin. _As he looked on,_ tiny hairline fractures began to form in the towering red barrier, followed by cracks. Cracks that soon widened and split under his bemused gaze, creating fissures first followed by outright breaks as the once-sturdy stone inevitably yielded to the great forces availed upon it. Great chunks split away from it now as the gaping fissure spread, toppling past the grinning woman and into the sea, forming a ragged cliff-side by which his sons could climb.

It certainly beat scaling a sheer face!

Sakura paused just long enough to catch his gaze, her haunting green eyes wild and fierce. Those intense jade orbs held him. Riveted the mighty warrior of the sea where he stood. Something passed between them in that shared glance, something he couldn't quite describe, a feeling he wasn't able to put a name to. A spark, perhaps? Who knew? It lasted little more than an instant; then she flashed him a saucy wink and bolted up the wall at a dead run, scaling it with naught but her feet, hurtling upward into the distance until she was lost to sight.

Another strange ability. For someone so fierce...

How long had it been since he'd felt his blood sing like this? Whatever it was, it made him feel young again. Then again, he'd never thought it would take a single swing to break the Red Line! He'd not met a woman like her in an age, not a once. He'd abandoned the idea of finding someone with strength _-spirit!-_ like this long ago, only to have this feisty little minx appear before him. Oh, she acted quiet and kind whenever he was in ear shot, but he knew beneath that facade lurked a terror that could make the world tremble.

"Marco," he rumbled.

"Pops?" the flame-wielder stiffened as Whitebeard turned towards him.

"Make sure she doesn't die."

Regardless, he wasn't about to let her have all the fun!

 _ **"LET'S GO BOYS!"**_

* * *

 _(...Mariejois...)_

* * *

Saint Roswald felt the aftershock and felt his world crumble with it.

"No, no, no!" he cried! "Not now! Its too soon!"

He'd know precisely what was going to happen the moment the world started shaking.

Marine intelligence had been right after all; the shinobi _were_ targeting Mariejois.

And what did this mean for them, you ask?

It meant an era was about to end.

Fumbling with his belongings, he hurled the last of the opulent items into his suitcase and slammed down down the hall. Not a moment later, another quake hit, this one even stronger than the last. Riding atop the roar of destruction he heard laughter, the deep baritone rumble of the world's strongest man tearing through the sky. The very ground beneath his feet shifted and cracked as he ran, threatening to give way at the slightest provocation. The scent of fire and burning flesh reached him, and he choked, eyes tearing up. He tried to tell himself it was the smoke, but he knew better.

 _It was fear._

Fear of death, fear of pain, fear of the pain he knew was coming. For him. For his children. For every single Celestial Dragon in Mariejois. Death came for them tonight. Swift and bloody retribution. The wrath of an entire nation and all their allies had brought itself to bear upon the holy city this night and there would be a slow death for all involved. He had no intention of being present for any of it!

A portion of the ceiling fell at that very moment and clipped him during his frantic flight, wrenching his ankle.

Roswald hissed and stumbled on, heedless of the pain, of the shifting soil, eyes wide. He heard only the laughter.

 ** _"GURARARARA!"_**

"Oh, hell."

 _Apparently, they'd brought friends._

With a soft whimper he picked himself up and limped on.

A blaze of golden-blue flame caught his attention as he stumbled past a window, forced to watch helplessly as the phoenix immolated a nearby building. A building made of stone! How did you burn stone?!

Gasping, he limped on, determined to find his children and leave this place.

Despite what his fellow Tenryubito might think of him Saint Roswald was no fool; he knew better than to stand and face the oncoming threat. One did not try to fight a force of nature. One could not. One simply _got the hell out of the way._ What use where guards against a force like this?! Saint Jalmack and his wife had erred terribly when they'd called down an admiral on those ninja. You didn't kill a ninja. You _couldn't_ kill a ninja. And if by some miracle, you actually did, for every one that you slew you would have dozens more, howling for bloody vengeance.

This time, he didn't think they'd get off with a stern rebuke.

This time there would be _blood._

Of course, he would know. He'd had the rare privilege-and misfortune!-of meeting one of these "shinobi" long ago during his youth. It was not an experience he cared to relive. Back then, the man in question, one _Senju Hashirama,_ had crossed the sea by himself on something of a voyage, curious to see what the other side of the world had to offer. Roswald had been little more than a lad back then, and as such didn't rightly remember what his father had done to upset the laid back man. But something _did_ and events...escalated.

If terror had a face, it was the First Hokage.

He'd ripped Roswald's father apart just by _looking_ at him.

Tore down entire _fleets_ of battleships without so much as lifting a finger, then proceeded to wipe the floor with everyone and _everything_ before he finally grew bored and went home, warning them not to follow. The only proof of his existence left behind was that warning. That had been decades in the past, enough for the event to fade from the minds of the people, both on this side of the world and the other. Time gets funny when you haven't experienced a traumatic event for yourself and so, most of the world simply forgot about the isolated incident.

But not Roswald.

Having learned his lesson long ago, he was determined not to relive it yet again. One simply did not piss off a ninja and expect to escape the consequences. Yet here he was, trying all the same. If anything like that _man_ was coming for them now, well, he wanted no part of it! They had to leave. Flee.

 _The Holy Land was no longer safe._

Reaching one of the few intact passageways, Roswald twisted his body, pivoted on his good leg, and flung himself inside. The gate! He had to reach the ga-ack! The floor gave way beneath him a heartbeat later, sending the battered Celestial Dragon flailing to the floor as the ground inexplicably became a ramp beneath his feet. Tumbling madly, his possessions forgotten in the scramble, he scrambled down the broken embankment like a drunken crab, gibbering madly, half-convinced that death would come for him at any moment.

When a hand finally settled on his shoulder, he screamed.

"Father!" a sharp voice caught his attention.

 _"Eeeeeeeek!"_

It took Roswald a handful of seconds to stop shrieking and realize that no, he wasn't about to be painfully dismembered and yes, that was indeed his daughter staring down at him. Behind her he saw his son, Charloss. Both looked a tad under the weather, which was to be expected really given the circumstances, but at least they were alive. Safe. For now. All that could change in a matter of moments, if the chaos raging outside was any indication.

"Come with me!" he commanded, climbing to his feet and wheezing with the effort. "At once! We're leaving!"

To her credit, Shalulia didn't question him. Good girl, that one. Smart.

Charloss, however, argued the point.

"But why?!"

"In case you haven't noticed, boy, Mariejois is falling apart around us!" Roswald swung a hand for emphasis. "We cannot stay here! If those ninja find us we're as good as dead!"

"B-B-But we can call an admiral, right?"

Roswald neglected to mention he'd already tried just that at the outset. To no avail. The closest was Aokiji, and his arrival wouldn't be for at least another hour, now.

They'd be long dead by then!

"Enough! We're leaving!"

"What about my pets?!"

"You can get new ones, fool!"

"Fine!" Charloss huffed, sniffing. "I was bored with the last one that yellow guy gave me, anyway!"

A cold dread settled in Roswald's chest.

 _That last one?_

"What did you do?"

"I threw her away!" his son grinned happily, mistaking his father's silence for pride. "She was all broken, so I used her until she couldn't move anymore! Then I took her body and strung her up in city square! Wasn't that smart? Now those _stoopid_ ninja won't dare to a-UGACH!"

An open backhand cracked across his face, sending the man-child sprawling.

Roswald had just struck his nitwit son for the first time in his life.

"You blind bloody fool!" he roared! "What were you thinking?!"

"W-What did I do?!"

"You've doomed us all, that's what!"

Stunned silence was his answer.

 _"How do you think they're going to react when they see her strung up?!"_

* * *

 _(...With Sakura...)_

* * *

Mariejois had been beautiful in its own way.

Rather it had been.

Before the Whitebeard Pirates came to play, before a certain kunoichi tore the Red Line Asunder, before the slaves rioted,

Now that beauty lay broken.

All this was overshadowed by sight hanging before Sakura Haruno, the mutilated body draped on the cross above her. Someone had taken it into their head to hang a mangled body across it with barbed wire and hooks, leaving it to rot in the elements. The sight of it was nothing foreign to Sakura, she'd seen far worse back in the war. It was the _identity_ of the corpse that took the wind from her sails, drained the speed out of her stride. She recognized the dead blue eyes right away, the dirty pale-blonde hair, and that familiar face-what was left of it-hanging loosely to the side, hollow and thin.

Ino.

Impossibly, she was still _breathing._

No one else had hair like that, no one else.

And there hung around her neck like a badge of shame, a plaque:

 **"Ninja. Ye Be Warned!"**

A choked sound left Sakura's lips.

"Oh, no." she murmured, "No, no, no, no...

Trembling fingers reached up and took hold of the wooden frame, slowly, carefully pulling her free. Laying her down. Her gaze alighted on the strange hoof-like stamp emblazoned on her forehead, forced there through a brand, the flesh still raw and unhealed from the wound, and something in her broke.

"Ino?" she shook her, gently. "C'mon

Indo didn't respond.

She just...stared.

As if the lights were on but no one was home. If her chest hadn't risen and fallen with breath, Sakura might've thought her dead. And for all intensive purposes she was. She could have handled her being dead. She had prepared herself for the eventuality that she might never see her dear friend again. Yet she had. Now, to be given hope, and then have it snatched away...

It proved far worse.

Someone was screaming, she realized distantly. Whatever it was, it didn't sound human. It sounded more monster than man, a furious grief-stricken howl piquing into a keening cry that took her heart and ripped it into bloody little pieces. A raw bellow of wrath and rage shook the world to its very core and still it continued to rise around her. Wait. Why did her throat hurt? Then she realized. It was her. But by then she no longer cared, saw nothing but the red haze falling over her vision. There was only the rage. The wrath. The overwhelming need to find the one responsible for this, the chant in her head, driving her upward, forwards.

 _That does it,_ her mind decided. _Everything DIES._

Sakura stood slowly, one thought in her heart.

 _Kill._

Woodenly.

 _Kill._

Without care.

 ** _KILL!_**

When she moved all of Mariejois _shook._

The mere act of kicking off the ground nearly shattered the holy city outright, great fissures forming from her leap. For Sakura did not move forwards, or even backwards. She leaped up. Gravity released its hold on her body and freed from the earthly tether, the pinkette shot up into the sky, leaving the Red Line behind. Bursting through the clouds the kunoichi threw nearly three quarters of her chakra into her heel, preparing for the devastating drop that was to follow. She hung there a mere moment longer, framed against the moon, willfully defying reality, before she realized somethng Odd. When had her hair turned white? She didn't remember it being that long, either. Gazing at it, a flicker of sanity sparked to life in her heart as she frowned at the long white locks lofting around her.

Perhaps she'd used a little too much after all, if her hair was starting to look like _this._

Then her eyes caught movement below in the next instant and the red curtain fell over her thoughts once more. Summoning a shadow clone, she kicked off the copy with incredible force using it as a springboard and all but, _launching_ herself at the white speck below like a falling comet. Reality came rushing back and her fist found its fifth target of the night, by far the sweetest.

 _'Got you!'_

 **THOOM!**

Shalulia never saw the blow that killed her; never felt Sakura's knuckles thunder into her face at the speed of sound. Her brain had already ceased functioning from sheer fright. Her brother wasn't quite so fortunate. He _heard_ his sister's skull shatter, _felt_ the blood spatter across his pudgy face, _saw_ the white-haired terror leap out of the red crater that was his sisters remains. _Smelled_ the gore on her as she started towards him with an eerie, blank expression. White eyes found his and he soiled himself on the spot. No! Not like this! Fumbling, he snatched up his pistol and tried to shoot, tried to kilt this _womancreatureMONSTER_ to no avail, she simply took the shot and kept coming.

Trembling fingers, itching with rage, locked around his throat. Hoisted him off his feet, dangling his corpulent form in the air as though he weighed no more than a child. With her other hand, Sakura reached for his right arm. Pulled. Flesh and bone parted. Blood fountained forth, the soft, wet sound of his arm striking pavement overshadowed by the shriek of pain that followed. It wasn't enough to satisfy her. So she took his other arm, followed by his left leg, and shortly, his right.

All the while, Charloss raved at her, paling with blood loss.

"Y-Y-You peasant! Who do you..think you are!"

Sakura did not bandy words with him.

 **...who the hell do you think I am?"**

She simply made a fist around his throat.

 **Crunch.**

The Tenryubito wasn't even able to gurgle as the kunoichi-turned-demigod crushed his windpipe to paste. It was simply no longer possible. Leaving him to choke on his own bloated blood, she turned her attention to the last of the entourage, and aging man wearing broken sunglasses. His body battered, confidence in tatters, Saint Roswald stared into those soulless white eyes and found no pity there. It was like staring into the void, as if the ocean itself had opened up against his shoulders, crushing him into the very rock itself.

With a whimper, he prostrated himself before this madwoman, pleading.

"Mercy!" he wailed! "Please, I beg of you! I surrender!"

Sakura afforded him one blink.

 **...no."**

And her hand scythed down ruthlessly.

That night...

...the Red Line ran red with blood.

* * *

 _(...Meanwhile With Naruto and Sasuke...)_

* * *

"HELLOOOOOOOO ALABASTA~!"

Sasuke's hand descended mercilessly.

"Ow!"

Naruto hissed softly as a tense fingers knifed into the back of his head, eliciting a pained hiss from the kyuubi jinchuuriki. Glowering beneath his cloak, the blond show his teammate an angry look. Sasuke simply rolled his shoulders in a light shrug and continued down the street with Kurotsuchi, leaving him to hasten after them into the dirty streets, cursing softly. The fourth member of their squad offered no reply, only adjusting the _oni_ mask they wore and matching his pace evenly.

"Why am I always the one getting hit, oi?"

A grunt answered him.

"Right. You don't talk. Ever." Naruto restrained a small shudder of his own and sped up his pace slightly, not willing to leave his back open to...whomever this was Just who the hell was this guy-were they even a dude?-that Kakashi-sensei insisted on sending with them? It was seriously creepy, oi! He _liked_ working with Kurotsuchi and he could _tolerate_ Sasuke most days, but this one?! Just who was so important that they had to wear a mask and never speak? Seriously!

Then he remembered he was supposed to be angry.

Ah, right!

"What was that for?!"

"Know the meaning of silence, Naruto?" At the blond's rueful glower, the Uchiha permitted himself a wan smile. "We won't be able to infiltrate this country if you go shouting your name to the rooftops." The brief look of consternation that flitted across the blond's face reminded him of old times, moreso his reaction.

"Hey, it was my Hiraishin that got us here this quickly in the first place! Don't I get some credit, ya know?"

"No."

"You wound me! I even went to all the trouble of disguising myself, dattebayo!"

...its not a very good one."

"OI!"

"Not to interrupt your bromance or anything, boys," Kurotsuchi interjected, "But shouldn't we be focusing on the mission?"

"Which mission?" Naruto sniped.

"Which one indeed?" Sasuke inquired.

"Eh?"

"Well, the _original_ mission was to take down some Warlord guy named Crocodile." Naruto pointed out, grinning trollishly as he palmed piece of fruit from a shady-looking vendor when the man wasn't looking and took a deep bite out of its strange, rimmed surface. "The second was basically to raise hell and collect intel. Not to mention-BLECH?!" Apparently karma did not appreciate this act of theft it seemed; for upon said bite, a horrid taste flooded his mouth, and he promptly spat the rest right back out. "Uck! Disgusting! But yeah," he continued, wiping his mouth with his sleeve, "Technically, we have more than one mission, so-

"See, this is why you two haven't gotten any." she deadpanned. "You're both _dicks."_

If looks could kill, Sasuke's glower would've rendered her ashes.

Naruto chose to take the jab in stride.

"Aw, you know you love us~!"

"I wouldn't go that far-

"Hold it right there, shinobi!"

"What the...?"

A blur of blue and white filled his perihpherals.

Naruto's smile withered away as a sharp shout reached their ears. Said shout was promptly followed by the sound of multiple flintlock rifles being cocked in their direction. Wait. Shinobi? Had they gotten their cover blown already? Granted, they hadn't been trying very hard, but still! It was the principle of the matter! He'd even gone to all the trouble of using his patented Sexy Jutsu to disguise himself! He never got to use that anymore!

"Tch," Kurotsuchi hissed. "Marines? Already? Seriously?"

"We knew you would return! You're under arrest!"

Sasuke twitched.

"Remember that bit I said about staying quiet?"

"Yeah?"

"Nevermind."

"Fine by me!

Before any of them could make a move however, a veritable swarm of hands sprouted from their attacker's bodies, subduing them in an instant with the harsh snapping of bones.

"Oh, there you are." a soft voice intoned. "My apologies."

Instead, they found themselves face to face with a dusky-skinned woman who looked like she'd just stepped out of an old western movie. Naruto's brow shot straight to his hairline as he took in the purple leather and ostentatious hat she wore, all the while trying to meet her gaze and prevent his eyes from roaming...elsewhere. That, he'd learned was a very good way of getting oneself beaten bloody. He wasn't about to make that mistake with a woman who sprouted a thousand hands, no-thank-you-sir!

In the end, he settled for the obvious.

 _"Okay, what the hell."_

"Uh...thanks for the assist, but who are you?"

"Nico Robin." the dark skinned woman replied, extending a hand. "I believe we can help each other."

Several hands, in fact.

"Holy crap!"

The blond squawked in surprise and Sasuke arched an eyebrow at the blatant flaunting of her ability. In the end, it was the Uchiha who recovered his voice first. Leave it to Naruto to make him the negotiator; when he got distracted by something cool his former teammate was absolutely helpless at this sort of things. Damn the infernal heat of this desert and double damn Kakashi for naming the dobe as the next Hokage. If he acted like this on a mission, how the hell was he going to lead a village?

At length he realized their "accomplice" was looking at him most pointedly.

The Uchiha sighed heavily.

"We're listening."

* * *

 _(...Elsewhere On The Grand Line...)_

* * *

"Oi, Nami! What's a ninja?"

The Strawhat's navigator frowned, snatching the paper from her captain.

Then the girl went pale.

"Are you kidding me?!"

"Hmm?" Sanji glanced up from his recently prepared cuisine, realizing the color had drained from her face. "What is it, Nami~swan? Oh, could it be~?!" hearts danced in his eyes as he swooned."Could it be that you've finally fallen in love with-

BOINK!

Her fist descended mercilessly on the lovelorn cook's head, raising a welt.

Zoro snickered.

"Ha!"

BOINK!

...until he joined Sanji on the deck in a groaning heap.

"Quiet, the both of you!"

"S-Scary!" Chopper cried! "Nami's gotten scary!"

"Oi, Luffy?!" ignoring their terrified doctor, the thief rounded on Luffy."Where did you get this?!"

Luffy grinned.

"The bird dropped it off."

"What bird?!" Vivi took one look at the paper and went pale as well. "Oh, no...

 **"Alabasta attacked by Ninja! Country in Ruins? Shichibukai Crocodile Slain?!**

"H-How could this happen...?"

Their captain only grinned.

"Nin-Nin!"

 **A/N: AND THERE WE GO! Next chapter will explain that list bit, there! Yar, mateys! Yer reviews be the wind in the sails of me ship! Without 'em me ship can't sail! Without 'em, me ship SINKS! And yup, pairings are up in the air! VOTE YA SCALLYWAGS!**

 **VOTE~!**

 **Now, lets clarify some things before you all get confused.**

 **Kumo and Iwa are currently declaring WAR on the World Government. Sakura, being in Kumo for a mission, ended up being drafted into that mess. I even went to the trouble of mentioning it TWICE now. Hence why she met Whitebeard. Naruto and Sasuke do NOT know she's over there. They do NOT know that Shikamaru is alive. And they WILL be setting foot in the realm of One Piece next chapter, and they won't be alone.**

 **Got that?**

 **Great!**

 **As to everything else...**

 **...well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? I promise, next chapter will have more of the promised humor, fear not! And we get into pairings...MWAHAHAHAHA!**

 **So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

 **..Review, Would You Kindly?**

 **R &R~! =D**


	4. Kill the Justice

**A/N: I'm alive! And I have a robust, weekly update schedule now!**

 **As of the time of this chapter, I have completed more than THIRTY of the 200+ fics in my library. Woo! I feel accomplished! Remember, guys,** **If I'm going to write new stuff from now on it'll only be after I COMPLETE others. So, when this tearful request to update this fic popped up, I thought it would be funny to give it a go, eh?**

 **Yo! AND THE REQUEST YEARS ROLL ON AND ON AND OOOOOON~!**

 **You guys may want to reread the last few chapters, else you're going to be confused.**

 **Now...**

 **CRY HAVOC, LET SLIP THE DOGS OF WAR, AND CAST YER VOTES FOR WHAT YE WISH TO HAPPEN! For all express purposes, both Naruto and One Piece worlds share the same planet in this story, and Kaguya's meddling did NOT help with that...**

 **ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE~!**

 **LOADS of VIOLENCE in this chapter! I apologize if any of you are offended...**

 **And in regard to Kaguya's appearance, for me, her horns will-should, and are!-always red. Not brown. Why would they be brown, oi?! Not to insult those with brown eyes, but I think we can all agree that scarlet horns look better than the color of wood jutting out of your head, no?**

 **Oh, and some of you were wondering what Orochimaru was up to in this story.**

 **Well...**

 **...you're about to find out.**

 _"Oi, now! What happened to you?"_

 _"That's a good question..._

 _"Your hair's nearly gone white! Are those horns...?"_

 _"I'm still me. At least, I think I am..."_

 _~Whitebeard and Sakura._

 **Kill the Justice**

 _Sakazuki was not having a pleasant day._

It had begun with a shock-quite literally-coursing through his veins. It had begun when he'd woke to find himself strapped to a table, divested of of his uniform, and bound in seastone shackles. It had begun, and thus far, there was no end in sight. After the initial confusion and cursing of his captor came the realization that he was quite powerless to make good on his threats. Afterward, the experiments and the needles, followed by another battery of tests that involved everything from attaching leeches to his body to depriving him of food, even jolting him again once every few hours.

Suffice to say, it hadn't gotten better after that.

He knew not how many days he'd suffered through this. Days? Weeks? Months? Surely it couldn't be that long. Surely.

Surely...?

 _Bzzt!_

"Aaargh!"

Another vicious jolt shattered that thought and sent his body into spasms, limbs twisting on table.

"Kukukuku! Is that all you can stand without your ability?" a soft, musical voice rang through the darkened room, just out of earshot. "How...disappointing. You won't make a very interesting subject at this rate let alone a proper host. Ah, but needs must, I suppose...

Straining his neck, veins bulging, Akainu shot his tormentor the most murderous glower he could muster.

"You...won't...get away with this!"

"Ah, my dear Admiral!" Golden, slitted orbs narrowed in the blackness. "But I already have. You'd be surprised by what kind of actions are sanctioned during a war. And we are, very much at war. I've been given leave to do as I see fit with you. Delightful, wouldn't you say? We have so much to _learn_ from one another."

The pale man that was his captor emerged into the light, then, his smooth face set in satisfaction.

"What are you?!" Sakazuki surprised himself with the vehemence of his outburst at the man in the labcoat. He had no idea who this pale man was nor what he intended, nor how he'd come to be taken captive by him. Everything was little more than a blur, the last few days a menagerie of images he couldn't bring himself to understand. It no longer mattered. What did MATTER was the fact that he was clearly trapped by said individual, who seemed more than willing to slice off a finger or two for the sake of his experiments. More than that, actually.

Orochimaru of the Sanin actually laughed.

"Merely a humble man."

Akainu didn't believe him for an instant.

He remembered precious little of their scuffle; the man had simply appeared before him out of the blue, capable of tanking just about everything he threw at him! Who the hell could regenerate like that?! And his sword! It cut through his defenses as if they were butter, striking flesh and bone whenever it made contact, far more often than he would like. Speaking of cutting, it looked like he was about to do some more just now...

"What do you want?!"

"I simply seek to expand my knowledge." the pale man replied with a hint of whimsy, idly patting his cheek. "I find the idea of these devil fruits fascinating. They don't exist on our side of the world, yet here they are in abundance! I'd consume one myself, were it not for the weakness you all seem to suffer. Now, do hold still. I need to cultivate some of your cells for my research. The procedure may be painful if you resist...ah, I lie. It will be painful regardless...

"Fiend! I will not yield to you! Just will prevail! When I get out-

That was all he managed before the knife found his arm.

Orochimaru's laughter rode over his screams.

"Where is your justice now?"

* * *

 _(...Meanwhile, in the Ruins of Mariejois...)_

* * *

 _"ICE BLOCK!"_

 _"KABUTOWARI!"_

 _"CHERRY BLOSSOM CRASH!"_

Two men and one young woman starred in a chaotic dance; a wild waltz of ice and earthquakes and raw _strength_ that could only have been choreographed by someone on a drug trip of truly insane proportions. The Red Line froze beneath their wrath, shattered, broke, and came together, only to crumble _again_ as incredible forces struck it anew. It was war on a maddening scale, the scope of which threatened to shake not just the seas but the very world to its core. Two titans engaged against a third in a fight for dominance. No quarter was given nor mercy requested. A battle for blood, pure and simple.

In his heart of hearts, Aokiji began to fear it was one he couldn't win.

Now, he fought just to get _away_ from this bloodbath.

Having received the Celestial Dragon's distress call, he and the Navy had hastened to Mariejois with all due speed, but nevertheless arrived too late to prevent the massacre that followed. By the time of their arrival, a number of slaves had already escaped, and a great many more had turned on their masters. Still others doubtlessly had taken refuge with Whitebeard's crew themselves and would soon be long gone. The audacity of this attack wasn't something the World Government could simply alter and sweep under the rug; no, Kuzan suspected the news would be on everyone's lips by morning.

He'd been fortunate-or unfortunate-enough to catch the Whitebeard Pirates just before they could depart for the open ocean, however, and that was where everything snowballed. Numerous though they were, untrained marines were little more than cannon fodder for the Newgate's crew and their shinobi allies. Many of those brave young men had perished horrifically within the first minutes of the assault. The rest were still down there, somewhere, fighting for their lives as the holy city burned around them.

Just as he was now.

Newgate alone should've been relatively easy for him to contain, albeit some somewhat cagey. Not so. He fought like a man half his age, and worse, he wasn't alone.

The girl was the worst.

Whatever, whoever she had been before, something had clearly changed.

Their admittedly intel described Sakura Haruno as a kind, good-natured woman who preferred to heal, rather than hurt.

Not this horned, white-haired terror.

Now she fought like a thing possessed; wild green eyes never leaving him even for a moment, always tracking him, watching his every move, darting in to intercept him whenever he escape. She was also maddeningly quick and viciously strong, as his cracked ribs would attest. Paired with Whitebeard, it was all he could do just to keep her from ripping his head off. For some reason or another she seemed to carry a grudge against him, and he was hard-pressed to meet terms of power she wholly outclassed him, and all attempts to entrap or otherwise momentarily slow her had been just that, momentary.

Anyone who could split the Red Line with a single punch was someone to be feared. It would've been another matter if he'd had Sakazuki or Borsalino to back him up, but here?

 _Alone?_

A solid hit would almost certainly take him out.

Retreat was the only option.

Then Sakura cannoned into him from behind and tore away his right arm, snarling obscenities.

"Ararara!" Kuzan grunted, shaking his rapidly reforming limb. "What kind of monster are you, oi!?"

By way of response the kunoichi spun, hair twirling madly.

By the merest of moments, Kuzan's Haki saved his life; shrieking a warning mere moments before those pale locks became a curtain of jagged needles. It did saved his life. His intuition did not, however, save his right eye. By some measure she managed to penetrate his defenses and rake her hardened hair across the right side of his face, savaging the rightmost orb beyond repair and drawing a roar of pain from the admiral. For a fleeting instant, anger took him, and his powers slipped their leash.

"Aaargh!"

Frozen tundra blasted outward from him, hurling the startled kunoichi into a building.

"Gurararara!" Whitebeard's sonorous laugh roared through his ears like a moving avalanche, stalling his offensive as he mowed down a fresh wall of ice with his bisento. "What's wrong, boy? Getting cold feet?!"

"That's a horrible pun, old man!"

Kuzan bit back a bitter grimace and arched his spine backward as the towering weapon passed perilously close to his head. Seizing the mighty weapon's shaft as it passed, he swept himself upright and allowed his own momentum to carrying him atop the spear's flat edge then over, silently praying his precarious position wouldn't give him away before his foe could react. A rush of ice surged up Newgate's weapon to his limb trapping both master and weapon, entombing them both in a frozen sphere. He knew it wouldn't last, Whitebeard had broken free of such a trap only minutes ago. When no immediate counterattack came he flung up his hand, summoning spears of ice to skewer the resilient captain before he could break free.

"Ice Block," he growled in triumph, "Partisan-

 _"SHANNARO!"_

Something slammed into his right leg with a sickening crack he could finish, buckling the knee and violently wrenching Kuzan away from his prey. The battered admiral felt rather than saw the ground swarm up to meet him, a swarm of shattered stone and broken earth sending him sprawling into the burning streets, his body shattering into a thousand shards of ice as he tumbled away. Frantically he willed his body to reform again, to rise up and meet this new threat, knowing he was vulnerable surrounded by such heat. He'd only just regained his vision when a shadow loomed over him, eclipsing him in darkness. He barely saw the jagged boulder as it slammed down onto his still-reforming body, shattered him anew.

Sakura Haruno was waiting for him there when he painfully pulled himself back together, her full lips pulled back in a sneer.

"Sorry," the kunoich hummed with false sincerity. "Did that hurt?"

"Arararara," Aokiji groaned, climbing to his feet. "Couldn't you have waited a few seconds?"

"Sorry," Sakura purred with silken menace, "But I'm not going to let you have your way tonight." He caught her eyeing his injured leg, then. Assessing it. Him. Judging his weakness. Trying to decide whether or not she wanted to risk taking him on herself. Aokiji wasn't inclined to let her make that decision. Damnit, he needed more time, needed more information! If anyone short of an admiral went up against this kind of power, then how where they going to win this war?!

"This really isn't your fight, you know."

Green eyes burned fiercely.

"Tell that to Ino."

"Who?"

Deafening laughter informed him that Newgate had finally freed himself, and his questions went unanswered as they dove back into the fray once more.

His injured leg made a difference almost immediately.

Every fiber of his being remained firmly focused on the grand melee unfolding around him, yet still he found himself giving ground to the enemy. Being pushed back. Him! Of all people! At the peak of his power in the bitter cold, he fought like he never had before; pivoting, turning, slashing and freezing, never standing in on place for too long, never giving them an advantage. To no avail. His adversaries were too united to present him with the opening he needed, too quick to cover one another's weaknesses. Worse, they knew his, inside out and out.

Despite all his power, he couldn't freeze Whitebeard's vibrations.

For all his agility, he couldn't match Sakura's frenzied speed.

Even with all his elemental prowess, he just...

Couldn't.

Cut.

It.

"Pheasant Beak!"

Pivoting on his good leg, the Admiral mustered the last of his flagging reserves and flung them outward in one final burst. Gathering his power, he released a massive wave of ice in the shape of a pheasant, blasting it forward to fly in the face his foes. All or nothing. Hopefully this would at the very least stop them in their tracks and buy him a few precious seconds by which to escape. Barring that, he might get lucky and annihilate them both. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. And if he failed, well...

...he certainly wasn't expecting the kunoichi to place herself firmly in the blast's path.

For a fleeting moment he thought that blasted woman was actually going to try and punch it. That would be beyond idiotic of course; she'd end up losing her limb at the very least. So it came as something of a surprise when Sakura Haruno did nothing of the sort, instead inhaling deeply, filling her lungs with air. Now, that made no sense at all. Surely she didn't intend to-

Then, eyes burning a poisonous green, she _screamed._

 _ **"HIYAH!"**_

That loud, piercing note filled the air in deafening cadence, burgeoned by chakra and raw power. Nothing more, nothing less. A veritable wall of sound and force howled outward to meet the imposing creature of ice and cold, and mowed it down. Shattered it, like so much glass. Aokiji's ultimate technique lasted mere moments before it crumbled, annihilated in the blink of an eye. The Pheasant Beak didn't so much break as it did cease to exist, as though the will of a supreme being had simply forced itself into reality and deemed his blast little more than harmless frost.

As the ruined shards of his ultimate attack melted away, she caught his gaze through the haze.

Something in Kuzan shuddered.

It was like staring into an endless void; but the void saw him and stared back. As though a creature far above him had taken note of him and deemed him unworthy. He felt...cold. He, with all the might of ice at his very fingertips, experienced a raw chill creeping down his spine. He couldn't fathom it. How could something like this possibly exist-

 _Crunch._

Sakura's fist sheathed itself in his stomach in the next instant, cruelly derailing his train of thought.

 _'When did she...?!'_

One punch.

That final blow took the last of the strength and dashed it on the rocky shores of defeat, driving it out of him as surely as the wind from his lungs. His legs buckled and his body crumpled around the blow, sinking to its knees in disbelief. Aokiji could scarcely believe it himself, even as he gazed up at her through his good eye. He'd known the need for retreat, yet the idea that he'd actually lost rankled him more than he cared to admit. He'd been beaten. Broken. Worse, he wasn't even sure he deserved to win in the first place. Had he ever been right to begin with...?

A shadow loomed.

"Gurarara!"

"Stop!" Sakura shouted. "Don't kill him!"

Whitebeard's bisento froze, and not from the ice.

"Surely you don't mean to spare him, lass? He'll only hunt you."

"Death is too easy." the kunoichi replied coldly, her voice an angry hiss as she reached into her satchel. "He needs to live. He needs to _suffer."_

Slapping a pair of seastone cuffs onto the man's wrists, she hurled him to the ground.

"Let your World Government find you like this." she sniffed. "Tell them what happened here."

Without pausing to see if would heed her words, she turned and left the broken Admiral in her wake.

Whitebeard grunted and shouldered his weapon as he followed his ally, quietly content to see the deed done, yet still unsettled. Part of him was eager to do as she said-to put the burning Holy Land and the broken Red Line behind him. The other...was in contention. They'd given the World Goverment a black eye today. The counterattack would be swift. And at what cost had it come? Many had died today. The Moby Dick was bursting with freshly freed slaves of all ages and races, from the smallest child to those withered of old age. He'd be more than happy to welcome them into his family, but...

Now that he got a good look at the young woman, Whitebeard realized something truly _had_ happened. Changed, in her.

Completely.

Utterly.

Irrevocably.

Sakura Haruno, that wily, wild woman, seemed to have inexplicably grown a foot taller since he'd seen her last. Her once short, bright tresses now stood a pale pink, long and though not as pure as the driven snow, one would be hard pressed to tell the difference indeed A single curved, scarlet horn jutted out of those frosted tresses, as though it were mourning the loss of its twin, lending her an almost demonic appearance. In the end only those wild green eyes and the smooth shape of her face told him who she was, reminded him that this small creature remained every bit herself despite her wild change in appearance.

"Oi, now! What happened to you?"

The former pinkette shot him a sidelong look. "That's a good question. I feel...strange."

She seemed to gaze at her hand as he looked on, pondering.

"Your hair's nearly gone white! Is that a horn...?"

Sakura paused abruptly, palming her head.

"I'm still me. At least, I think I am."

She frowned, considering.

"Aren't I?"

She turned pleading eyes up at him, as though seeking confirmation. A strange desperation gleamed in those emerald depths and for a moment she seemed like a child, not a grown woman capable of shattering men in a single blow. Never before had Whitebeard felt his age more than in that instant. With a low rumbling sigh, he reached down and laid a weathered hand on the girl's shoulder, only to realize that the young kunoichi was actually trembling. Whether out of cold or actual fear, he knew not, only that something ought to be done about it.

"If that's what you believe, then its true." he said, after a moment's thought. "You helped me, and you helped these people. You're a hero to them. Those aren't the acts of a bad person."

At that, Sakura brightened somewhat and resumed her pace.

"Thanks, gramps."

"Gurarara!" Whitebeard chuffed softly as they neared what remained of the docks. "I'm not _that_ old, lass! C'mon, lets get out of here, before reinforcements arrive."

"Whatever you say-ACK!"

 _"Sakura-sama!"_

As the exhausted kunoichi hastened round the corner to the wharf she quite suddenly found herself under attack. Not by marines as she first expected, but by people. Happy people. Countless people. Innumerable men, women and children, young and old alike of nearly every race. Minks, merfolk, dwarves, giants, all of them former slaves, all of them freed by her heand. Hemmed in by these teeming masses, it was all she could do to stammer out a greeting before she found herself swarmed. In short order she was lifted up on their arms

"W-What the heck? What is all this? One at a time! Hey!"

"They were waiting like this for the last hour, pops." Ace muttered aside to Whitebeard as the masses fawned over the dismayed kunoichi. "Couldn't get them to leave without her. I swear, they think she's some kind of goddess or something. What kind of crazy monster strength was that?"

Whitebeard chortled softly.

Then, loudly.

Louder.

He knew full well that Sakura was no deity; far from it, she was merely a troubled young woman trying to do right by her family and friends. She had plenty of heart, and she'd do whatever it took to save those in need. She was, by rights, better than most men he knew. The world wouldn't see it that way. These slaves certainly didn't see it that way. Some would undoubtedly label her a hero, others a villain. A goddess who'd delivered thousands from slavery and delivered fiery retribution on the Celestial Dragons, or a monster who destroyed everything in her path.

"Pops?" Ace frowned. "Why are you laughing?"

In the coming days the world would dye her and her kin all manner of colors for their deeds here today. The legend of what she and the shinobi had done here today would be passed down in infamy, regardless of who won the coming conflict. To be the one to see that outcome...it made this old man want to hang on just a little longer. To defy fate, to watch his age fade from memory and witness the coming of a new dawn as these young pups made their way in the world, to see the ground quake as they passed.

"Well...

Laughing, he smiled.

"To them, she may well be."

A goddess? A monster? A shinobi?

To him, she was neither of these things.

 _She was simply the girl who Killed the Horizon._

 _ **A/N: One Piece counterattack looms next chapter! This is faaaaaaar from over!**_

 **Got that?**

 **Great!**

 **As to everything else...**

 **...well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? I promise, next chapter will have more of the promised humor, fear not! And we get into pairings...MWAHAHAHAHA!**

 **So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

 **..Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview! They are a bit rough, mind you, so I hope you'll excuse any errors. And to those who dislike previews, simple. If you don't want to read them, then don't.**

 **But isn't it easier just to give in? Come to the dark side...**

 **...we have cookies! 8D**

 **Next chapter is all about Naruto's group! Care to guess what's happening? XD**

 **(Previews Ahoy!)**

 _"Kishishishishi! Go forth, my zombies, destroy them all!"_

* * *

 _"I wish to propose an alliance, shinobi."_

 _"Hmm? Sure, I guess." Naruto shrugged, wholeheartedly chewing on a meaty haunch, "Damn, this is good stuff! We could always use more allies, though. Any terms?"_

 _"None..._ _so long as Uchiha Sasuke swears himself to me."_

 _The Uchiha froze._

 _"Pardon?"_

 _Robin blinked._

 _"Oh, my."_

 _"What?!"_

 ** _"Done!"_** _Naruto crowed._

 _Kurotsuchi cackled._

 _"HA!"_

 _Sasuke...not so much._

 _"Dobe, I will MURDER you!"_

 **R &R~! =D**


	5. Kill the Warlord (Interlude)

**A/N:** **REVIEW FOR IT FEEDS THE ETERNAL ENGINE OF CREATION!**

 **Seriously though, they're the only reward I get for writing these days. I don't get paid to do this, sadly...**

 **Been awhile, but I'm back!**

 **Blame the trolls-Doom Marine 54-for my absence. Now I've returned with thicker skin and a band of helpful co-writers to help me get my stories up off the ground and back to their former glory. It really does help to have folks like Dylan Millwood, Agurra of the Darkness, Greyblueflames98 and the like there to help. If I've forgotten to name anyone, I apologize. Its a bit of a long list!**

 **Oh, and Doom, if you keep harassing us with your sock puppet accounts and keep telling ME to kill myself, we'll just have to keep blocking you.**

 **No hard feelings, you little troll =D**

 **Also, I'm very tired right now so it really helps to sit down and read all those wonderful reviews after a long day at work. Really keeps my engine going; if someone leaves an exceptionally good one, I'm able to feel inspired and keep writing for week on end =D**

 **Yo! AND THE REQUEST YEARS ROLL ON AND ON AND OOOOOON~!**

 **You guys may want to reread the last few chapters, else you're going to be confused.**

 **Now...**

 **CRY HAVOC, LET SLIP THE DOGS OF WAR, AND CAST YER VOTES FOR WHAT YE WISH TO HAPPEN!**

 **Sorry if its short, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things after being away for so long.**

 **Think of this as an interlude of sorts, an update on what Naruto, Sasuke, and Kurotsuchi were up to while Sakura and Whitebeard wrecked Mariejos. Poor Vivi's going to be in for quite a shock when she and the Strawhats finally make it to Alabasta...**

 **...and is it just me, or does anyone else want to see Naruto and co. take on Spandam and CP9?**

 **Oh, that'd be a fun fight to see...**

 **One last thing...**

 **...surprise!**

 _"So you can turn to sand. That's adorable. Tell me..._

 _...what happens when we turn that sand of yours to glass?"_

 _~?_

 **Kill the Warlord (Interlude)**

"So you've betrayed me, _Nico Robin?!"_

If the famed "Devil of Ohara" was at all wounded by her ex-benefactor's statement, she did little to show it. On the contrary, the sight of the great Crocodile in chains warmed her heart in a way few could these days. Having all but abandoned any notion of an ordinary life from the age of eight, she worked under a number of loathsome individuals in the past just to survive. Whenever they grew tired of her-as criminals often did-she'd simply abandoned or betrayed them to the authorities; always fleeing before she could witness the consequences of her own actions.

Now she found herself witnessing the consequences of her actions firsthand, yet without fear of retribution.

It was rather...satisfying, all things considered.

"Betrayal is such a harsh word, dear." the tan woman hummed, crossing her legs in her chair as she sifted through a fresh stack of papers. I was never on your side to begin with. How can you betray something when you never believed in it to begin with?" That he thought she owed loyalty to him of all people was laughable. Her life in Baroque Works may have been a luxurious one, but it was still a far cry from pleasant. Yet for all his flaws and cruel sadism, the Warlord kept meticulous records on his enemies. She supposed she ought to be thankful for that, at least.

Countless hands rifled through heaps of documents, filing away items of interest, burning others.

 _"I'll kill you for this!"_

Aqua orbs regarded him coldly.

"I'm afraid my new friends won't allow that."

"You blasted devil!" he roared! "You'll regret this mistake-UGACH?!"

"Right, right," Naruto's cheery voice chirped from across the room, "That's enough of you, alligator."

The man's expression bordered on apoplectic.

"IT'S CROCODILE, YOU FOOL!"

"I'm sorry, what was that, _alligator?"_

 _"Aaargh!"_

"Stop poking the shichibukia, Naruto." Sasuke's reply carried from one of the lower floors, "You're liable to give him a heart attack."

"Tch. Fine." the blond groused. "Just kill all the fun. Put it in camps why don't you, duck-butt...

"What was that?"

 _"Nothing!"_

Robin stifled a small smile.

There was certainly something to be said about the blond; he spoke his mind and didn't give a damn what others thought about him. Unlike his compatriots who preferred violence to silence, the whiskered warrior wasn't afraid to offer his opinion when needed. Indeed, while Sasuke and Kurotsuchi tasked themselves with keeping Crocodile immobile, he seemed all too eager to help her rip apart the man's palace and scatter his riches to the winds. Ah, speaking of winds...

"Whiskers-san?"

Naruto's head poked around the corner.

"Hmm? Find anything good in the mass, Robin-chan?"

The casual suffix almost drew a small blink from the older woman. Oh, my. If she hadn't known better she might've mistaken his remark for flattery. Alas, she didn't think her shinobi escort was remotely capable of such things. Perhaps his more stoic companion, but she found herself drawn to this one's youthful innocence regardless.

A hand sprouted from the shelf beside him, presenting him with a sheaf of paper.

"I believe these are the documents your team was searching for. All the information Crocodile collected pertaining to the Seven Warlords is contained within."

As she looked on, those blue eyes lit up like fireworks.

"Oho~! This is perfect! I knew we made a good decision teaming up with you!"

Crocodile stirred underfoot.

"Give those back! They're mine!"

Naruto nudged him with a sandaled foot.

 _"Riiiiiiight,_ keep telling yourself that, alligator."

Alright, now the whiskered warrior was just trolling her former employer...

"Shinobi! You wouldn't talk so big if I wasn't cuffed!"

"Is that so?"

In response, the earthen prison sheathing his body tightened around him; further entrapping his form. For all his struggles his flailing only further encased him in the cocoon. Bloodshot eyes regarded his captors with a thin veil of scorn, his own fury narrowly serving to conceal the

Kurotsuchi smiled disarmingly.

"Ninja don't play fair, bub."

Bloodied and battered by the brief brawl that had taken him from the height of his power, the infamous Shichibukai lacked the strength to back up his threats. Bound as he was, the defeated warlord could only glower up at the archaeologist from where he lay on the floor. Try though he might his power refused to come to him, stifled by the Seastone shackles clamped around his forearms. Had that been the sole problem he would've fought his way free and found one of his subordinates to remove them. But therein lay the rub. He found himself unable to move. Even the act of breathing required an almost monumental effort on his part.

How could this have happened?!

He'd been careful-oh so terribly cautious in his machinations-painstakingly moving his pawns into position. Years of scheming, all undone in an instant. His network scattered, operatives flung to the winds. Even now he had no way of knowing who had gone into hiding or worse, who might've turned the coat. Surely _someone else_ must've betrayed him; else this coup wouldn't have been so successful. A night attack, followed by a quick scuffle, then these blasted cuffs. He hadn't even sensed them coming! If only he could find a way to escape...

Sasuke sighed.

"So? What should we do with him?" a hand fell to the hilt of his blade. "Killing him sounds about right, I say. He made us work for this."

Crocodile swallowed thickly.

"You wouldn't dare, you broody little-

"Bah, we've already exposed his plot." Naruto disagreed, talking over the enraged mobster. "Let the people decide. Give him to the king...

...who thinks we're little more than terrorists, remember?" Kurotsuchi chimed in sweetly. "We weren't subtle."

"Alright, I admit we didn't plan _that_ part out, but we've got the bastard now, so-

 _"WHERE ARE YOU YOU DAMN CROCODILE! STOP RUINING VIVI'S COUNTRY!"_

A distant shout in the streets overrode whatever else he said.

Robin arched a gentle brow.

"Ara, it appears we have company." craning her elegant neck, she turned to regard a window. "That sounds like Strawhat Luffy, out there. I'm amazed they found this place so...quickly."

The ninja trio exchanged a baffled, disbelieving look amongst themselves.

 _"Who the hell are the Strawhats?"_

 **A/N: Phew! Writing while sick isn't fun. The heat isn't helping, especially considering I live down south.**

 **Still, an interlude is better than nothing, and I plan to update again-more than once!-before the summer is through.**

 **Let's face it, few people ever die in One Piece, but there _will_ be deaths in this story. Hell, two people died in the first chapter! Some may live, while others perish. For example, we all thought Ino and Shikamaru were dead, but they turned out to be alright...even if the former's in a coma at the moment. Who knows? If Choji IS somehow alive, knowing his luck, he probably wound up in Big Mom's territory, knowing his luck.**

 **THE HORROR.**

 **If you think this story is zany now, just wait till the next chapter. Also, I've got a damn good idea of what Crocodile's "secret" is, so the first preview should give a hint as to what I intend to do with that bugger...**

 **On another note, Naruto and co. aren't trying to get in the way of the Strawhats, and I don't believe they'll stick with them for long. They've got their own mission to accomplish, of course. At present, that entials capturing/killing every Warlord they come across. Furthermore, shinobi intervention has drastically changed the One Piece world as we know it, setting some events into motion earlier than others, and preventing certain scenarios from appearing altogether.**

 **As to everything else...**

 **...well, you'll just have to wait and see, won't you? I promise, next chapter will have more of the promised humor, fear not! And we get into pairings...MWAHAHAHAHA!**

 **So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...**

 **..Review, Would You Kindly? And of course, enjoy the preview! They are a bit rough, mind you, so I hope you'll excuse any errors. And to those who dislike previews, simple. If you don't want to read them, then don't.** **But isn't it easier just to give in? Come to the dark side...**

 **...we have cookies! 8D**

 **Next chapter we get to see Shanks!**

 **And the Strawhats of course.**

 **Next time: Kill the Marines!**

 **(Previews Ahoy!)**

 _"Hee-haw! Its been awhile, Croco-boy!"_

 _"Gack! Who the hell're you?!"_

 _"How rude!"_

* * *

 _Smoker bristled._

 _"Surrender Nico Robin at once!"_

 _Naruto and Sasuke exchanged a look._

 _"Right, that does it. They're all getting a bijudama to the face."_

 _"Not if I burn down those ships first."_

 _Kurotsuchi groaned. "Boys!"_

* * *

 _Naruto sniffed, preening at the praise._

 _"Hehehe, a hero always find a way out of a tough spot, ya know-WHY'RE YA HUGGING ME?!"_

* * *

 _"He doesn't look like much."_

 _Naruto clamped a hand over his mouth in a vain attempt to stifle his laughter. Even then his shoulders shook mightily, his whiskered visage turning red as he struggled to contain his mirth._

 _Nami and Kurotsuchi simultaneously face-palmed._

 _"Oi."_

 _Zoro frowned._

 _...hey, ninja! You know how to use that sword?"_

 _At that remark, Sasuke's right eye began to twitch violently._

 _"Don't you have three? Overcompensating for something, perhaps?"_

 _In an instant, the two men were at one another's throats, blades blared to harsh afternoon sunlight._

 _"I'LL CUT YOU!"_

 _"Bring it on!"_

* * *

"Aaargh! Baka! What were you thinking?!"

"He was annoying. So I punched him."

 _"Naruto!"_

* * *

"You must be joking."

Baby Five offered a small smile.

"Mercy?"

"Let me think about-no."

 **R &R~! =D**


End file.
